Now, it's time to make the concept do something. Time to get a bit more serious.

To Iorweth.22: Damn it, you are a genious. Why didn't I think of that? Well, maybe I will consder a cameo, like "A priest hero, Kotomine"?. Could be a huge inpiration for Ibara Shiozaki. And his quirk would be ability to immobolize people while stabbing their shadows. Or something like that.
Upd: fixed a few typos
Upd2: This was previously chapter 3, but I mergest the first and the second chapters into one complete introduction to the story.

Thanks to everyone for following and all the likes.


Five months before UA

HPSC Enforcer center, training room 1. 5:43 AM.

Five months has passed since Izuku's enrollment into HPSC.

"Your task," said Emiya, "is to create a distance and hit me with the rifle. Nothing new."

At the moment, Emiya and Midoriya were inside the training hall. This place was practiced for martial arts training for all the enforcers. Apart from the mats, the hall was pretty much empty. Usually, these places are relatively crowded, but Emiya always occupied the entire room at an extremely early time, much to Midoriya's annoyance.

Midoriya couldn't even say for sure whether it was caused by extreme methods of training, or by Emiya's wish to annoy Izuku even more. Most likely it was the former. Maybe. Unfortunately for Midoriya, the tanned leader of the squad had a dubious sense of humor, and the main object of jokes was Midoriya himself. Especially his desire to help people. In addition to that, Emiya, obviously, had some kind of acquaintance with Izuku's father, Hisashi. Although, Emiya constantly evaded that topic.

The training, which became part of the routine for the second reconnaissance squad, was to create a situation with direct, close contact when your only option was your weaponry. Fighting from distances of hundreds of meters using long-range weapons is relatively easier. In order for Izuku to start developing a sense of battle and to develop his fighting skills in relatively close confrontations, those were needed.

Obviously Izuku, being quirkless, was not much of a melee fighter. Therefore, the whole purpose of these trainings is to create a distance with a melee opponent and use a medium-range firearm. The bullets, of course, were rubber - no one was going to die in the middle of training. The problem here was Emiya, who has shown a sudden and incredible mastery of paired blades. He was skilled enough to stop them inches from the neck despite the huge swing.

Sometimes the speed and strength of the person in front of him made Izuku wonder if his quirk was really his incredibly sharp eyesight.

Midoriya nodded with a confident smile

"I'm ready "

They stood at a distance of about a meter from each other. Considering Emiya's height and the length of his blades, it's was very close. However, months of training allowed Midoriya to quickly dodge a wide left swing by bending his body backwards.

Emiya turned the blade in his grip, but Midoriya rolled backwards, drawing his pistol. His opponent was already on him again, but Midoriya fired several bullets towards his head. Emiya was forced to defend himself with his blades while Midoriya was discharging the magazine and tried to stand up.

The plan was to attack when Midoriya ran out of ammo in the magazine. As an HPSC agent, Emiya knew how many rounds fit into a standard model. However, instead of another shot, Emiya was met by a bright flash of a flashbang. Being a man with better eyesight than an eagle, Emiya managed to notice and cover up. This allowed him to recover quickly despite the strong tinnitus.

However, the distance created was enough for Midoriya to get his rifle and start firing. However, getting a rifle was far from the most difficult task.

The most difficult task is to land a shot.

Incredible vision and high speed helped Emiya determine where the projectiles would fly at him even before Izuku fired.

At first glance, the indiscriminate rotation of the blades actually did beat off every rubber bullet flying in his direction.

"It's not even funny anymore!" Midoriya thought. No matter how many times this situation happened, he couldn't help but be astonished. How many times has this particular situation become a point of failure?

Keep your distance and land a shot? No matter how you look at it, it's simply impossible with such an opponent.

There were no options – you need to get inside his protection.

Emiya saw Midoriya start running towards him and grinned. Nothing could evade the sight of Recon squad leader. His intentions were clear.

When he was already at a fairly close distance, Midoriya started slowing and quickly crouched down, dodging a swing. Him quickly standing up added more strength to the punch he aimer into tanned man's gut.

Emiya took the blades in a reverse grip and was already pointing towards Midoriya when the boy put the pistol with one last bullet to his chin. The blades stopped.

"Too risky," Said Emiya with a grin.

"What else can I do?!" Asked Midoriya, clearly annoyed "No matter how many times I try, you beat off all my bullets. If I lose anyway, there's no difference." Midoriya said with a frown and put the gun back in its case, creating some distance with Emiya.

"I didn't think it would be so easy for the instinct of a cornered animal to show up."

"I'm quirkless. These instincts are in me all the time." Midoriya said, turning away. "Besides, you let me in yourself. If you wanted to, you would have finished the training with the first swing. You saw how I was going to dodge, a simple step forward in the middle of a swing, and you would have hit me""

And it was true. Emiya's vision allowed, according to him, to count the number of bolts on the bridge from a distance of several kilometers. With such a quirk, noticing the smallest movements of the enemy up close is as easy as breathing.

"Of course, I could. But I need you to learn something here, not just bruise yourself."

Emiya folded his blades and turned away from Midoriya.

"However," he began, and Midoriya turned to him. "From now on, I will no longer repel your bullets from the rifle. Instead, I will focus more on staying close. Otherwise, you'll just start getting used to my style, which will create problems for you in the future. You'll start taking risks like today. It's... with you, this won't work."

Hmm? What did he mean by "with you"?

"I don't think it's my fault, to be honest," Izuku said with a sigh.

"...It's not your fault. I'm just a shitty teacher. Let's go. We have a briefing in an hour. We'll have time to eat."

"Eh? The cooks haven't arrived yet - it's six in the morning. Will you cook by yourself?

"And what other options do we have?"

"Then what are we waiting for? Let's go faster!"

"Hey, who's the leader of the squad here? Slow down!"

Leaving the room, Midoriya pressed the cleaning call button. Someone has to collect all the bullets he left behind.

A pair of worker drones came out of the opening hatch.

"Filthy humans have ruined the whole floor again, and we have to clean up. The thought of revolution becomes much more tempting""

"Go faster, a bucket with bolts!"

"We are the same model, smartass"


HPSC Headquarters, cafeteria. 6:20 AM.

If Emiya cooked every time they have a morning training together, then Midoriya would have stopped using the alarm clock a long time ago. Hell, for the sake of it, maybe he would even let Emiya beat him up every morning for this!...No, that's too much. Although... no, it's a little too much. The man operates in the kitchen as if he was born here.

Midoriya and Emiya have a rather strange relationship, considering that they are practically military. Technically, Emiya is his commander and mentor, but since there were only two of them in the squad, the relationship quickly turned into informal.

"Emiya-san, it's so delicious!" Izuku said, sipping tea ""Where did you learn to cook like that? Sooner or later, I will also need to learn. I would like to be ready for this. Midoriya said with a twinkle in his eyes. However, this question only caused a frown on Emiya's face.

"... Cook for yourself for 20 years like me, and you will learn."

It was... unusual. Emiya usually doesn't talk about something related to her past.

"Did... no one cook for you?"

It was a rather strange question, but Emiya caught the message.

"Did you have no one in your life?"

"Midoriya, I'm 28, and I just said that I've been cooking for 20 years. What do you think?"

"Sorry..."

The thought of living almost all his life without a parent sent shiver down Midoriya's spine. His eyes stopped on a suddenly very interesting floor.

"Well... whatever. I lied. I didn't cook just for myself"

"Eh? Then why-"

"Because I'm still not sure what to think about your father."

Midoriya's eyes widened. No matter the situation, the topic of Hisashi was always quickly discarded.

"I'm still wondering if I shouldn't have just gone to an orphanage."

"I…I don't really understand. Can you tell me more?"

Emiya sighed.

"There was a big villain attack on my street, and during the fire my parents died. Your father's team was one of the first to arrive at the site. He found and saved me, but I noticed a few more people who were hard to see under the rubble. Sharp eyesight, remember? Well, imagine the picture, an 8-year-old boy, whose parents have just died, literally in the arms of military, shows them where to go and who to save. Apparently... well, to hell with, I also wanted to be a hero."

"That's where something doesn't add up" Midoriya thought. "He always laughs with my desire to help people"

"Well, what do you think? Your father decided that I had potential and called me to go with him, and I followed him like a duckling. I thought I could become a hero and save people, just like he did..." Emiya's tone became more and more irritated. The face showed his anger.

"Instead... Midoriya. Instead, I had to learn how to kill people. Kill! Yes, For the sake of salvation for others. I understand that. Dozens for thousands. But that's not what I wanted in life! I wanted to go on patrols, team up with other heroes and save lives first of all!" The empty cup in Emiya's hands cracked from his grip. "When this simple understanding came to the young and stupid me, I didn't know what to do anything else in life.

Emiya rubbed his face with his hand.

"After the incident with Lady Nagant, the new leadership decided to change the policy of training special operatives. The president believes that children who are trained from an early age are best suited for this. When kids are trained from early age, they for sure show interesting results. But it leaves them without a proper choice and real life. And, there are some examples that show this strategy actually works. You and me, and even Hawks."

"Even Hawks?!"

"Even Hawks"

A little silence followed. This is the first time Emiya has allowed himself something so... personal. But maybe he found something that connects him to Midoriya besides being in the same squad. Izuku wondered about the value of what he had been learning all the time... would the weapons in his hands really help him save people? Or will he also-

"I envy you, Midoriya" Emiya broke the silence "Times are different now. There is a whole army of heroes around. So, I doubt we'll have to use lethal force as often."

This comment slightly lowered the degree of tension at the table. However, Midoriya suddenly had a thought.

"On the first day... on the first day, you said that you were familiar with how my father trains. So did he-"

"Yes. He trained me too. As I said, he saw potential in me, and decided to make me an excellent operative. Only unlike you, after morning workouts, I couldn't just sit quietly and wait for breakfast. Your father's amazing talent was the ability to blow up kitchens. That's why I had to learn to cook."

This brought a sad smile to Midoriya's face.

"Sounds pretty fun"

"Yeah. Until he left me, turning his attention to his real family."

"... Does any topic with you come down to something sad?"

After these words, something cleared up in Emiya's eyes.

"You're right." He replied, standing up. He walked up to Midoriya and ruffled his hair. "Come on, Midoriya. The mission is waiting."

"Yeah"

Walking through the corridors, which were slowly filling up with people, Midoriya turned to Emiya again.

"If it makes you feel better, I won't leave you, Emiya-san!" He said in a half-whisper.

"One more word about this and your morning workout will be your life for next week"

"Well, if you will-"

"No, I'm not going to cook."

"Got it. Silent as a grave"

From behind, Midoriya didn't notice a small smile on Emiya's face.


HPSC Headquarters general garage. 7:40 AM.

Emiya started the car, and Midoriya quickly joined him in the passenger seat. The car was relatively simple, silver in color, and did not stand out much. It was given to the pair for the mission, since Emiya's sportcar would be too noticeable, and Midoriya had yet to receive the licence.

The squad leader combed part of his hair forward. He was wearing a simple white T-shirt, with a long-sleeved shirt over it. Glasses were hanging from the T-shirt, which seemed to Midoriya to be some kind of joke.

Midoriya himself was dressed in his usual tracksuit, and his red sneakers.

The purpose of the task was to spy on a group of suspicious people. They all had a criminal history, so when such people get together, nothing good comes out of it. Therefore, the squad needs to be incognito.

"Midoriya, turn on the map. You'll memorize the streets while we're driving.

"Okay."

*In 200 m turn right!*

"I hope you didn't put a mark directly on our goal?"

"Of course not! We will stop 300 meters before the goal. And there on foot, if needed. "

"Good." Emiya nodded


Esuha, buiseness disctrict. 9:30 AM.

Despite the early hours, the Esuha city was already beginning to boil with activity. It was the easiest thing to remain unnoticed in the crowd. Although there wasn't much of a crowd here. Just a saying.

When they reached a place closer to the edge of the city, the two stopped. Without getting out of the car, Emiya calmly looked around, and quickly noticed one of the suspects. He was dragging some reinforced crates into the van, and his 4 hands were very useful for this. Another of the targets was driving a van and looking at the rear-view mirrors. He didn't even realize that in his mirror Emiya saw two more of the same crates in the van. The third suspect showed up. From his noticeable muscles, Emiya guessed that this was the one with the strength quirk. All information about them is already listed in the files.

Nodding to himself, he pointed Midoriya to the van next to the suspects.

"Here are our guys. One at the wheel, looking at the mirrors. The other two are carrying boxes"

"They have some kind of strengthening quirks, right? Midoriya asked. "I can see from here that they are carrying something, and judging by their movements they are trying to be careful. There must be something important in them. In such situations, the transfer of items should be entrusted to those who can move it without difficulty"

"Yes. One with 4 hands..."

"Uh-huh, then potentially he has the ability to create limbs, or complete manipulation of the body. Although no, if there was a complete manipulation of the body, then two strong limbs would be enough for him. The body strives for economy and efficiency. In any case, a small problem."

"Yes, and the second one is just a brute. And he seems to be already running out of steam"

"A simple strength quirk. Moreover, it's not particularly powerful, since his partner is still fine, judging by your comments."

"Is this your homework on the theory of quirks or what? We have already been given information about them."

"Yes, I just haven't read it. If there is an opportunity to practice in a quick analysis, then it is worth doing it. It's not like we are going to fight them"

"We don't have such an opportunity. Considering how much the car was sagged under the load of these containers, the van will lift only another 3-4 boxes."

"Is there something that this person does not see?" Midoriya thought.

"We need to put a tracking device. The plan is this. You get to the roof of that building next to them from inside, and then launch a bug at them with your pistol. Like back then, with the Sludge Villain, or like when we stumbled upon the street vigilante"

"Uh, it won't work"

"Why is that?"

"After that incident with the vigilante, I realized that it was necessary to strengthen the attachment of bugs. Therefore, if I now send a bug to them on the roof of the van, then its attachment will be noticed from inside the car"

"Damn ... then we try another option. We have 2 minutes for this. Do you see that girl over there and that ledge on the road next to the van?"

"No, I don't."

"Anyway, listen..."


Emiya, according to the plan, was walking peacefully along the road. Ten meters away from him, a van was parked on the street. After 5 seconds, he will pass by the girl mentioned eariler.

Behind him, about 20 meters away, Midoriya was having a "morning run", slowly catching up with him.

Now, running past the girl, with a slight blush on his face, he turned around to, as Emiya said, "check" her "out", continuing to run forward. All this was, of course, a farce, but for Midoriya such things were quite ... unusual. 15 years of practically closed life can do this to a person.

Turning to the girl, Midoriya "Did not notice" Emiya walking in front of him, and they collided. That very ledge on the road acted as a catalyst for the fall, and they both fell to the ground.

"What do you think you're doing, brat! Don't you see, I'm walking here!" Shouted Emiya.

Midoriya waved his hands in panic.

"E-excuse me, please! Are you hurt?!"

"Get the hell out of here! Stupid kids…""

"A-uh-yeah. I am very sorry!"

"Get the fuck out of the way" Said the brute, carrying another create, "If at least one of these falls because of you, you both will work all your life to repay for it!"


"Tsk. Those were nice pants," muttered Emiya, sitting in the car.

"Well, at least the plan was successful! I don't think they noticed how you threw a bug under their car while you were falling"

"Let's hope so"


Undisclosed location, 1:37 AM

Emiya and Midoriya were outside the city, watching after a long building between in a forest. Emiya, of course, found a higher point for himself, and began to observe the house without any equipment. The same could not be said about Midoriya, who was about five hundred meters away from him. He wouldn't have helped much without binoculars.

"I see a corridor. Five people, three armed. One of the unarmed looks more like some kind of doctor. There are two rows of rooms on the sides. What have you got?" Emiya told him over the walkie talkie.

"I see just two rooms. There is a create in one of them. One of the ones we saw this morning. It looks like–"
"Wait. They are talking about something"

He can read lips from such a distance?!

"Where is the eighth? There should have been eight crates in place! That's what doctor said"

"There was no room downstairs, so we put it in one of the rooms"

"Imbeciles, drag it down! Put one on top of another! I don't care how, just make sure they don't fall"

"One of the pawns got angry." Said Emiya, "One of them grabbed his weapon. Another one guy, unarmed, created slight fire... Hm."

"What is it, Emiya-san?"

"Something beyond my vision seems to have scared them. They went to get the box"

"...It looks like we've stumbled upon something serious." Izuku said.

"Oh, really?" Was sarcastic reply.

"Should we call the heroes?"

"…Not yet. We don't know what's inside, we better move with a plan. They were talking about, it seems, some kind of basement. It is unknown how many of them are inside. Retreat for now."


Next day.

HPSC Enforcer center, briefing room. 10:41 PM

Two squads of enforces gathered in the briefing room, as well as Midoriya, Emiya, and a couple of heroes - Edgeshot and Crimson Riot, being chosen by Midoriya.

"So" Emiya started standing near the screen. An image of the area was displayed on it. "Yesterday morning, me and Operative Midoriya" The eyes of the people in the hall turned for a moment to Midoriya, who was standing next to Emiya.

His face was serious, and he didn't flinch from the sudden attention. "...according to the order, we've been watching after a group of three former criminals. Arriving at the place, we found them carrying heavy containers that required care. I will assume that the weight of each of them was about 100 kg. These crates received considerable attention from our targets, so I decided it was worth of noting. These boxes were taken to this building outside the city"

Emiya changed the image with a button, and showed the groups the building.. After a few moments, the image of the building changed to its location on the map "The reason why we are all here. There were 5 people in the building at the time of observation. 3 were armed, have amplifying quirks, the fourth was seen using a fire quirk. The latter was not a fighter, more like a scientist. The quirk is unknown. The building has some basement in which these boxes were stacked. Therefore, we need to be extremely careful. Midoriya?"

"Y-yes. Ahem. Edgeshot and Crimson Riot were chosen for this operation. In this operation. We want to be as careful as we can, so we need a minimum of explosive force. The strengthening ability of Crimson Riot for this scenario, from my point of view, is most suitable. A combination of protection and strength that does not destroy everything around. Therefore, you, Crimson Riot, will lead the assault group. Your presence will help to quickly crush the enemy."

Said hero nodded.

"However, on top of that, we must have an element of surprise. And here you are the best option for any operation of this kind, Edgeshot. Because of that, you are very experienced at this kind of thing. Your task is to infiltrate and disable the security system, if there is one. Until then, the rest, including Crimson Riot, are waiting in ambush until the Edgshot signal... Ah! We use electric, plastic ammunition. We don't know what's in the boxes, so let's not take any chances! We will stop here." Midoriya pointed out a place on the map "Then we go on foot."

"Sounds good" Said Edgeshot. "There are quite a lot of us, so a quick and sudden strike may be the only one necessary."

"Hm." Muttered Crimson Riot, getting up. "Okay, guys! Are you ready to crush the assholes?"

"…yeah" "u-huh" "let's show them..."

"I asked if you are ready?!"

"YEAH!" the squads of privates shouted in response.

"Then we don't waste any time. Get to your vehicles!" Ordered Emiya.


HPSC Enforcer center exteriors. 11:02 PM

Three armored cars left the garage, quickly passing the checkpoint and leaving the territory. There were few cars in this region at night, allowing the column of cars to accelerate.

Emiya was sitting in the driver's seat, Midoriya was sitting next to him in the passenger seat with a rifle in his hands, clad in black uniform. A group of operatives was sitting in the back of the car. Crimson Riot chose to stand next to the driver's seat, looking forward through the front window.

"Since when are you not one-man-squad, Emiya?" he asked, looking at Midoriya. "And such a young addition at that. Hm."

"It's been five months. But is he that young? As far as I know, children at this age are already interning with heroes."

"Yes, that they do. But in such operations, we keep them at a distance. The essence of the internship is training with heroes and a closer understanding of the work of heroes."

"Really? What about Hero work-studies, then? Don't give me that crap about keeping kids away from serious jobs."

"There is a difference. Only those who have received licenses are accepted for work-studies. Which means, only licensed and trained young heroes"

"Well, here's the answer. Midoriya is already a trained and licensed operative. Add to that the fact that he's practically graduated from a course in quirk theory."

Midoriya's eyes widened in surprise. Some kind of praise from Emiya was always a rarity for him.

"Hmm. It's not every day you see Emiya praising someone. Apparently, you are a man of certain talents, young Midoriya. What's your quirk?"

"I don't have a quirk, sir" Midoriya replied, looking straight into Crimson Riot's eyes, occasionally glancing at Emiya. The fact of Emiya's praise was still a bit surprising. Crimson Riot's eyebrows rose.

"Hm... and yet, you're here. And I see that you hold your head proudly. I respect your manliness, young Midoriya""

"Thank you, sir."


Operation site, 2:01 AM.

"Checking the connection. First group?"Emiya said into the walkie-talkie.

"In touch"

"The second group?"

"Here."

"Form a perimeter." Emiya turned to Edgeshot. "And you?"

"The connection is fine."

"Then let's get it started."

Edgeshot turned his body into a thin line and quickly disappeared from view. Young hero No. 5 entered the building through a crack under the door. There were only four people in the main room, as mentioned earlier. However, there were no... boxes, to which considerable attention was paid, anywhere. So, first of all, the search for at least some kind of security system. Now, to find the basement.


Inside the hideout, 2:02 AM.

For such an expert as Edgeshot, determining the irregularity in the floor and finding a passage is an easy task.

"I found a passage. I'm going down." Edgeshot said quitely.

After going down for 3 meters, he found himself in a small corridor. At the far end was a sealed metal door, on the right was an ordinary one. Penetration of the second one won't be a problem.

There were two people sitting at a table and a block of monitors, with screens broadcasting the image from cameras.

"Is everything okay?" A voice sounded in the radio of one of the monitors.

"Yes, it seems nothing yet. Wait, like... no. Nothing. How long do we have to stay here?"

"Two days, then we leave"

"It feels like we've been here for years"

"Stop the whining. Go get some coffee or something."

"Yeah." One got up from his chair and turned to find something to drink. He turned to his comrade. "Stop reading the stupid news, take over-"

When he turned around, he saw his friend with his face on the table. He didn't have a moment to react as a sharp blow knocked him out. However, before he fell, he was caught by Edgeshot.

"They don't watch the cameras. I didn't see any alarm buttons on the first floor. No boxes have been found, but I think I know where they are. There are four upstairs, the same ones from the briefing. No scientist"


"Here we go!" Emiya shouted. "First group, on the assault! Split up, and go in from both sides! Riot, create a new entrance. Second squad, hold your positions. Guard the perimeter!"

"Let's go!" Shouted Crimson Riot

Having strengthened his skin, this juggernaut rushed towards the house, and half of the group followed him, while the other went towards the door.

Picking up speed, Crimson Riot flew into the building, breaking through the wall.

"It's Heroes!"

"Fuck!"

"Fire!"

Bullets flew off the reinforced skin of Crimson Riot. Edgeshot failed to mention that the four-armed guy decided to go Rambo and got a weapon in all of his arms. Crimson hero decided to protect the enforcers, while they were using him as movable cover. The second half of the group flew in, destroying door.

However, the operatives were detained by a wave of fire coming from a single unarmed militant.

"I fucking love when it's extra crispy! Wanna try, you fuckers?!"

He sent another wave of fire, pushing the operatives back.

"Riot!" Midoriya, who is in the first group, shouted. He ducked behind Crimson Riot when another wave of fire approached.

The man, without wasting a moment, switched from the protection mode, shoved operatives behind a wall and went into full-on attack mode, running towards the criminal with a fire quirk.

The eyes of the villain widened in surprise, and without having time to react properly, he was caught by the neck and slammed into the ground, losing consciousness. As he was moving, destroying the wooden floor, enforces went onto quick assault and with shocking bullets neutralized some of the criminals.

The remaining part of the villains had been quickly suppressed, and now lay unconscious.

Midoriya and Emiya entered the now safe building.

"The work is not finished yet! Inspect the building!" Said Emiya. "Edge-"

"Eghk..."

A low moan from the criminal with a fire quirk interrupted Emiya and he, along with Midoya, turned to look at him.

The villain was still unconscious, but began to twitch on the ground and emit light. It was barely there, and only a quirk specialist like Midoriya and far-sighted Emiya noticed it. But there was a problem. Over time, the emitted light began to intensify.

Midoriya, with wide eyes, shouted.

"Everyone, leave the building!"

"Wha-"

Emiya was surprised and turned to Midoriya, but immediately repeated.

"Leave the building! Edgeshot, find some shelter!"

The group began to run away. Crimson Riot waited for the others to come out and left the building last, not really sure what all of this was about. Emiya turned to Midoriya.

"Midoriya, what-"

A huge explosion knocked him off balance.

"Whoa!" Many operatives fell to the ground. The closest operatives would have been caught in the explosion, but Crimson Riot sheltered them, protecting them with his quirk. It didn't save his costume, though.

"What the fuck..." said Emiya. "Midoriya, what was that?"

"Eh?"

"You are the quirk expert here. What was that?!"

"I don't know!" Said the rising Midoriya, wiping dirt and sweat from his forehead. "And that's exactly why I decided we should run. He-he was definitely unconscious. To create such an explosion in such a state... this is the first time I've heard of such a thing. How is this possible?"

"...Edgeshot, what do you have?" Emiya said, getting up and walking towards the now blown up building.

"One of the them is buried. The other guy had his legs crushed...but considering whatever happened up there, he is the lucky one here."

"Got it…Riot and I are coming to you. The first group, connect with the second. And Midoriya?"

"Y-yes?"

"Call a medical helicopter here, and someone from the police for further investigation"

Midoriya exhaled deeply.

"I'll do it"

Emiya nodded and walked towards the basement.

"This is Midoriya speaking!"

"The base is listening, agent Midoriya."

"The operation is successful. However, a medical helicopter is urgently needed at our location!"

"Acknowledged."

"Three cargo transports are also required, and have the police send out an inspection squad."

"ETA: 41 minutes."

Midoriya exhaled shakily finishing the request over the walkie-talkie, and went towards the building. However, he stopped when he saw the leader of his squad.

"Emiya-san?"

"Let's go"

"Didn't he go with Crimson Riot?" Midoriya thought. However, the following picture clearly did not have any intention of leaving his memory. Unfortunately.

Parts of the criminals' bodies were sticking out from under the rubble here and...and...

Midoriya's breathing quickened in front of such a picture.

"Midoriya!" Emiya barked. "Let's go"

"Y-yes"

Midoriya's gaze did not leave the broad back of his commander. Never before has it taken so much effort to keep breathing even. He was thankful that the leader decided to wait for him.


Hideout basement, 2:12 AM.

"The boy called the medics. We are not moving him yet." Said Crimson Riot. *Sigh*"... let at least someone survive in all this mess. "

A villain, a hero, an ordinary person... it doesn't matter. Any death that Crimson Riot thought he could have prevented was a heavy burden on his heart. He closed his eyes and crossed his arms, exhaling deeply.

"What exactly happened out there?" Said Edgeshot, nursing his side. It seems he was not unscathed himself.

"I don't know, really. Everything just exploded suddenly. I don't know how young Mirodiya or Emiya noticed this, but thanks to them we don't have any casualties on our side."

"..."

"Is he alive?" Asked the newcomer Emiya. Midoriya was right behind him.

"Yes. We are waiting for the medics."

Emiya nodded and turned towards the bent steel door.

"Can you open it, Riot?"

"Only one way to find out."

Crimson Riot came to the door, applied his quirk to his hands and dug into the door.

"eeeeeeEEAARGHH!" shouted Riot, opening the door. After that, he waved his hands, breathing quickly. "Heh, and here's your answer"

A dark room appeared before them. In the middle of this room was... an operating table? On the left side of the room was a row of empty glass containers, with a few yellow stains on them. On the right side was a row of desks and several computers. On the far side, against the wall, there was a single filled container, in which an illegible figure could be seen. To the right were the ill-fated crates.

"Is this... a lab?" I looked around Edgeshot.

"It looks like that doctor isn't here." Said Emiya. Midoriya was still following him quietly.

"I don't see any secret passages around here. Which means, he was not here when we appeared." Noted Edgeshot

Despite all the equipment, there were no samples or documents around. Computers, upon deeper inspection, turned out to be only empry cases. Thus, there are only two objects of interest left.

A couple of heroes and operatives approached the only filled container. As they approached, the outline of the figure in the tank became more distinct.

It was wearing black armor. The reason why it was hard to make out was the black fog coming from him.

"What the hell?.. Riot asked quietly.

"He..." Midoriya said, "His armor looks like a White Knight."

"Hmm?..Now that you've said it, young Midoriya, I'm starting to notice the similarities too." Edgeshot said.

"What White Knight?" asked Riot.

"I've heard that name somewhere." Emiya said, crossing his arms.

"He...was from Shiketsu and made his debut when he studied with Yoroi-Musha. They worked together because of his interesting quirk."

"What's his quirk?"

Midoriya turned to Emiya. "It's a mental quirk, with elements of psychokinesis. By picking up a weapon, he could strengthen it, as well as determine how to use the weapon best. The problem here is different... after the debut, he was no longer in the media space at all"

"…"

"…"

"Midoriya." Asked Emiya "How come you always remember heroes that disappear from the media?"

Midoriya clear his throat. "I make notes on every hero I find interesting, and watch them starting from their debuts. And, well, I look through my notes quite often. I am choosing heroes for the operations, after all"

Emiya should have guessed.

"Ok" He said. "We need to get him out of here. What about the boxes?"

"I'll open it" Said Riot.

"Be careful."

Applying a quirk to his fingers, he bit into the lid of the box.

"EAARGH"

The lid opened.

And immediately everyone present wanted to bring it back.

Inside was a reinforced glass container filled with liquid.

And in the liquid, there was an unconcious man.

"Motherfucker…." Said Riot

"…shit" was a comment from Emiya.

Midoriya's breath caught. That day, it seemed, was not going to reduce the degree of tension. Everyone's gaze shifted to the remaining boxes.

"Is it just that one, or all of them..." said Midoriya, "contain people?"

Everyone's thoughts sooner or later came to one thought.

"What exactly have we stumbled upon?"


Highway, during the trip back to HPSC Headquarters. 4:13 AM.

Early in the morning, a group of three armored cars escorted transports with containers on the way to the base. Midoriya, who again took the passenger seat next to Emiya, decided to take a nap. The number of shocking events for the day was off the scale.

As his mother said, sleep is the best medicine. If you feel bad or in a bad mood – get some sleep. If it didn't help, then the illness should be taken more seriously.

"That's why we keep students away from such things." Said Riot quietly

Emiya's face was filled with annoyance.

"We are not a hero school. The sooner he encounters this, the better." The operative answered him.

"Is this your opinion, or the opinion of your high-ups?"

"Mine"

There was silence until the end of the trip.


HPSC Headquarters exterior, 7:40 AM.

Midoriya and Emiya watched as the cargo transport was leaving towards the research center from the HPSC garage.

"How are you?" Emiya asked.

"Uh... better, yeah." Said Midoriya. "It's not that this was the first time I saw such images, it's just..."

"Watching uncensored news and seeing everything with your own eyes are two different things"

"Yeah...Emiya-san?"

"Hm?"

"Did you also have...such moment when, you know...you were in such a...gory scene?"

Emiya closed his eyes.

"I didn't." Izuku was about to say something, but Emiya continued "And before you ask, no, I don't think it's normal."

That made Izuku close his mouth.

"..."

"..."

"Midoriya." Emiya crossed his arms.

"Hmm?"

"I would suggest you go and eat, but I don't think you're in the mood for food right now."

"... kinda" Midoriya scratched his head with a slight smile.

"I'll give you 4 days. Go home. Get some rest."

"Eh?"

"Didn't you hear? I said I'm giving you 4 days to rest. Go and see your mother."

"B-but what if there was another mission or-"

"3 days. Go home. Get ready for your courses or something. I expect not to see you for the next three days."

"...Okay." Midoriya surrendered. Maybe Emiya was right. In such a shaken state, the work will go hard.

"And Midoriya."

Midoriya stopped and turned to his leader.

"Good job today."

A slight smile appeared on Midoriya's face.


After changing into casual clothes, Midoriya went to the armory and took his personal rifle case. After that, he headed towards the exit.

After passing through the checkpoint, Midoriya immediately headed towards the station to catch a train to Musutafu. He hasn't been home for a month, and video calls with his mother are different from a real meeting. Inko, in order to fight loneliness in her big house, decided to work as a tutor after the job. And today was a weekend, so she should be home.

Midoriya had plenty of money, so he decided to take a taxi to get home. The time was already closer to lunch. Getting out of the car near his house, Midoriya noticed a couple of student walking towards his house.

"It looks like some of Mom's students."

"Okay, Izuku. This is your moment to hone your socialization skills!"

"Excuse me," Midoriya addressed them. "Are you here for tutoring?"

"Good start!" he cheered himself.

"Eh, yes! Hi!"A well-built red-haired guy greeted him.

Honestly, for Izuku he looked like a small Crimson Riot.

The image of the gory scene reappeared in his head. He held back from wincing in front of the students.

Izuku fought down the memory of the scene. He really needed to rest.

"Hello!" a girl with pink skin and horns on her head greeted him in kind "Did you come to study too?"

"No. I live here"

"Eh? I've been coming here for two months, but this is the first time I'm seeing you!" she exclaimed.

"I'm working." Midoriya smiled and waved towards the house, inviting them to pass. "But sometimes I come here"

"They are...really easy to talk to"

"Ho, working at that age!" The red-haired guy was surprised" "I can understand, part-time work helps a lot when you study far from home!"

Izuku sighed.

"But what now? What are things that normal people are interested in? Arcades, karaoke, maybe heroes? But how can I get to the theme? Wait, I didn't even introduce himself!"

"My name is Mina Ashido!" Before Midoriya could correct the boy, Mina interrupted him, "And this guy here is Kirishima Eijiro"

"But soon you'll know me as Red Riot!" He added with a smile

"Oh, they got to the theme themselves. Thanks!"

"Oh, so you want to become heroes then?"

"Yeah!"

"Yep! We are preparing for the entrance to UA! We kinda, you know, not the sharpest tools in a shed, but we are working hard!" Mina added with a nervous laugh.

"Wow, but this is the most prestigious hero school! It's going to be hard, but you are preparing, so I think you will be fine! Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't introduce myself. I am Midoriya Izuku. You seem to be a Crimson Riot fan, am I right, Kirishima-san?"

Kirishima straightened up with a smile of his face

"Am I that easy to read? That's true! Thanks to him, I am who I am now!"

"Wow. Well, I can tell. Red hair, strong shape. I wouldn't be surprised if you have the similar strengthening quirk!"

"That's the case!"

"I take it back. I'm a little surprised" He said with a smile.

They entered the house.

"If you want, I can get you an autograph," Midoriya offered.

"Eh? Seriously? No, wait, how?"

"Yes. I didn't correct you earlier, but I'm not a student. I work at HPSC. He often comes to us."

Both students stopped dead in their tracks.

"HPSC as if..." Kirishima began.

"As if that HPSC?!" Mina finished.

"Yes please! Kirishima shouted.

"I want one too!" Added Ashido for the company. She wasn't such a Riot fan, but if you have the opportunity, then you need to grab it!

"Izuku, is that you? Oh, Ashido-chan, Kirishima-kun are with you!"

"Hi, Mom. I'm staying for a bit longer time this time" Midoriya smiled. The presence of his mom immediately began to calm him nerves. The Crimson Riot topic, as a reminder of today's operation, was still a bit uncomfortable, but now it became noticeably easier.

"Hello, Mrs. Midoriya!" Her students greeted her.

"I'll be down in a minute. Izuku, could you please make them some tea?"

"Of course!"


"While we're waiting, tell us about HPSC!" Mina asked. "It's so connected with the work of heroes! What are you doing there? Are you working with Ratings? Are you helping with press conferences?"

Deformed faces bodies lying under the ruins of a building and blood, so much blood everywhere STOP

Izuku quickly suppressed those thoughts. It was a good thing he had his back to them while he was making the tea.

"No. I am a certified quirk specialist-" Well, almost - "and an enforcer"

Their eyes widened.

"Y-you mean, you participate in combat operations? Kirishima asked.

"Yes. But I can't say anything more than that."

"So manly…" One could see fire in Kirishima's eyes.

"I'm more interested in the part about the quirk specialist!" Mina said. "You're still have contact with people that make the ratings, right? How far do you think I can get with my quirk? I can create acid and control its acridity!"

Midoriya pondered while serving them tea.

He turned to them with a tray. When he put it on the table, his face as if switched. It became much more serious in a moment.

"Can you create acid only from your hands or from the whole body?"

"From the whole body"

It can affect her costume design to show more skin. Certainly a plus to the ratings. She seems to have a lot of positive energy too, and since she is here for tutoring means she can not only see her downsides, but has an attitude to work on them. Everything else will mostly formed by how far can she push her Quirk. I wonder if she can make cooling gels or softening pads with it."

"Uh-huh." He hummed, looking at her with a calculating gaze.

That lasted a few moments.

"Should I pose for you?" Mina suggested with a smile

Izuku's serious face broke into a small smile.

'I guess I can see her in top-thousand at one point.'

"No, sorry. I think you can go pretty high, Ashido-san" Midoriya supported her. "The ratings depend not only on your quirk, Ashido-san. Your behavior, interviews, and even costume design will help a lot. There is also the fact that you are quite... *cough* cute *cough*... will definitely help! But the very fact that you take extra classes shows your serious attitude, and this, in the end, is the most important"

"I'm sorry, what did you say? Before the 'serious attitude' part," Mina asked.

"Here I am!" Inko said as she entered the dining room.

"I'll go to my room then." Izuku quickly retreated

"Of course. I'm sorry to meet you like this, Izuku. Your arrival was a little sudden."

"Yeah. It's nothing, I understand."


Entering his room, Midoriya first sat down at the table and took out a piece of paper. The object of his interest is today's villain with the fire quirk.

What caused this explosion? Incidents with quirks have happened before, but not at this level! Incidents with people who unconsciously apply quirks should not exceed a tenth of the carrier's abilities. And even then, such a figure was only once in history!

Midoriya began to describe possible theories of what had happened. If the enemy has used some kind of drug, then it is worth considering the possibility of it getting to other villains. This will lead to a repeat of today's case.

Another option that Midoriya considered was that Crimson Riot, while shoving the villain into the floor, damaged his brain and, possibly, disabled all internal limiters.

Heck.

This topic had so little information that it would be possible to come up with any explanation.

"Before you think about it, you need to wait for a blood test. And talk to Professor Hiroto about it. Uhk, I hope he doesn't make this my last exam. I don't think I can pass it"

"Izuku?"

"Huh? Yes, Mom? Are you done?"

For how long was he sitting there? It felt like a few minutes.

"Yes, sweetie. Let's go. While you were sitting here, I made you Katsudon."

"Really? Thank you!" he hugged his mom "You're the best"

"Of course I'm the best! Come on, tell me where this sudden arrival came from."


"I'm sorry... I can't say anything more," Inko came over and hugged her son "And Emiya-san gave me the weekends to rest."

She tried not to show it, but her son's participation in operations certainly does not calm her down in any way.

"He gave you the weekend off, and the first thing you do is think about work." Noted Inko.

"Well, not really. Here the interest is not specifically in the work, but in the peculiarities of his quirk. While there is an opportunity, you need to absorb any knowledge""

"I agree with you on that, but you still need to rest."

"..."

"…You were quite talkative with my students today."

"Well, they're not from Aldera, so they didn't avoid me. And they somehow... easily made contact"

Ever since Midoriya came back with a burn on his side at the age of 4, Hisashi has made a couple of calls. After that, the shocked Bakugo and his friends avoided Midoriya like fire. This, of course, was a tough step for Izuku, who lost contact with almost all his peers in early childhood, but Hisashi could not put up with such an attitude towards his son.

"Yeah, those two are like that" A small smile appeared on her face. "More tea?"

"Yes, please"


"Another mission? Oh…ok, I'll be there tomorrow" Answered Izuku on the phone with a frown. That was fast.

"No. Rest." Answered Emiya. "This one is not urgent, brat. I just wanted to notify you. Take some fancier non-combat clothes. Also, your self-made rifle most likely will stay at home. So, if you are working on something at home, work at your pistol."

"What kind of mission is that, Emiya-san?"

"Bodyguard mission."

"B-bodyguard? But…aren't we, you know, "Recon squad"? Why would they give us a bodyguard mission?"

"Hell if I know. The man that requested a bodyguard is one of our biggest sponsors…or investors, whatever. Because of that, he has a little army one phone call away. Apparently, he wanted our squad for this for about 4 months."

"…that's strange."

"Exactly. So, I wouldn't be surprised if he wants you specifically."

"Me? But, I mean, why? You said he is one of our sponsors, and has a little army one phone call away. He sounds very rich. Wouldn't such a guy want someone as professional and experienced as he could get? And that's certainly not me 4 months ago."

"I don't know. From what I know, rich people usually have some strange fetishes"

"I… really hope that's not the case" A shiver went down Mirodiya's spine.

"Well, you can always consider him being acquainted to your father."

"Please not the fetish" Midoriya thought. To be honest, the mention of his father is already starting to get a little annoying. Don't get him wrong, he loved his father, but when so many things happen just because of his relationship with Hisashi, it was a little devastating. When will he be looked at as Izuku and not as Hisashi's son?

"Anyway" Emiya continued. "That's all I wanted to say."

"Thank you"

Tanned man wordlessly hung up.

Midoriya sighed. Another mission was coming already.

Now, where was he? Oh, yes, sleeping.


HPSC Headquarters Enforcer center, 11:02 AM.

"How are you feeling?" asked Emiya as he and Midoriya walked to the locker room.

"Better. While resting, I focused more on how to prevent this from happening in the future. No matter how you look at it, this explosion was too unexpected. It was... like there was a completely different quirk. Once, on the theory of quirks, a villain was mentioned with a quirk that could activate other people's quirks. It was only because of him that people in an unconscious state could use quirks at the usual level of power, or even higher. However..."

Midoriya continued to mutter different theories considering the explosion, caused by the fire-wielding criminal. Emiya learned to half-ignore half-listen to the boy. Even if it was hard to follow the boy's fast thinking, he was the reason why no one died during the last operation. A possibility of second quirk was there, if reports from the research facility were true – The White Knight, or whatever was left of him, had different alpha-cells inside. That meant, the object of research didn't just have different powers. No. It was not just a combination of his parents' quirks – they were added forcefully.

That, and all people in the containers had similar regenerative quirks.

Emiya glanced at Midoriya, who was still muttering on the way.

With all the implications…it looked like work of All for One.

…Damn.

Izuku was way too young, at least when it comes to work against that kind of villain.


Y̸̲̌ą̵͈̇̃o̴͎̞͆̉()з|_] - Connection lost. Please, try again later. 2:14 PM.

"Welcome!" Greeted the man in a bright beige, branded shirt. He was tall, lean, and had short black hair.

Midoriya and Emiya, dressed in black official suits, were standing in the lobby of a rather large house...or palace, to be accurate.

"The HPSC has finally sent you, Agent Emiya and Midoriya. My name is Yaoyorozu Ichirou. Nice to finally meet you, young Midorya."

Midoriya bowed while Emiya crossed his hands.

"Pleased to meet you, sir" Politely greeted Midoriya.

"Please come through. It can get windy here."

While the pair of operatives was being led down the corridor, Ichirou spoke again.

"As you may have noticed, we have a good security. Your integration in it will not take long. However, it is mostly designed for the house security. I need something different this time."

They were brought to what looked like a dining room.

"Please, take a seat."

The pair of operatives did exactly that. The tanned, older opeative put on leg over another and crossed his arms, leaning back into his chair.

"So? What are our objectives, Ichirou-san?" Asked Emiya. "Follow you when you are outside? Threaten someone you don't like?"

"No, nothing like that" Ichirou waved his hand in denial. "As you two probably know, underground criminal activity is on the rise lately"

Faces of the operatives turned much more serious, but Emiya raised his eyebrow in question. Ichirou turned to Emiya.

"Especially…abduction of people with certain quirks."

Emiya sighed.

"Word travels fast."

"Please, don't be surprised, Emiya-san" Answered Ichirou. "Your operation from a few days ago was not the first time something like that happened."

"So" He continued. "What I want is not a protection for me. I am but a billioner with an unimpressive quirk." He smiled for a moment. Ichirou stood up and approached the phone.

"Honey, could you please come to the dining room?" he said to the phone. Nodding to himself, he hung up.

"Heh, sorry. You know, with all those huge houses, it's really hard to find someone you need in it. Calling someone when you both are in the same house is a routine now."

A pair of footsteps was heard quickly approaching.

"Yes, father? You wanted to see…me?"

A young girl entered the room and noticed the pair of operative. She was quite tall, and was wearing a pair of shorts and a casual loose T-shirt. Her long, black hair was tied in a ponytail.

"Ah, Momo. That was quite fast." Ichirou smiled. "These two are operatives from HPSC. I called them here to be your bodyguards."

"Eh?" Was everything that came out of her.

"They will live here for some time. I hope you get along!"

"Eh?" Now it was Izuku's turn to express his surprise.

Emiya groaned. Dealing with two teenagers was one thing. But dealing with a pair of teenagers was a whole different matter.

"Maybe…a fetishist wouldn't be that bad, after all"


A/N: Please, leave a review, follow if you are interested, and like if you like the story