Chapter 15: Chaotic Storm
A/N: Well here is the new chapter. We are finally to Aldera and the chapter. Is. Big. Hope you like it. Also, someone made a fanart for how Watanabe looks over on Ao3. But FFN won't let me post it here. I'll link it in my profile later
"Watanabe hurry up, we don't want to be late!" Natsume shouted. Watanabe groaned and stumbled out of the room, "Those weights... were a bad idea," Izuku snickered, "Anyway, Kaminari is meeting us, there right?"
Inko nodded, "Yes, his parents said they would be there too. Katsuki will be there too," Inko said, her face growing slightly grim. Izuku looked down abashed and gave a slight glance at Watanabe who seemed to have chosen to ignore Inko instead of reacting. The family piled into the car.
The drive was silent. The nervousness in the air seemed to weigh down on their bodies. Izuku in particular was in deep thought. Inko had promised to bail him out if the judge or the other lawyer tried to bully him, but he was more nervous because he felt he would have a breakdown while testifying. Thankfully, both Natsume and Inko had taught him how to deal with it. Ryuzen was not much help in this regard, but Izuku knew that his uncle was influential enough to have pulled many strings for the case.
One of the things, Izuku was most nervous about, was his meeting with Bakugou again. They would be meeting for the first time since the hospital incident. He knew that Mitsuki had given Inko regular updates on Bakugou and was grilling him. Heck even, Masaru had been annoyed. Izuku glanced quietly towards his cousin again and gave a mental sigh. He was quite sure that Watanabe and Bakugou's meeting would be disastrous, but he also knew that Watanabe could control himself. He might act like a loose cannon, but he knew how to control himself when required. Izuku was also anxious for Kaminari's reaction to when he met Bakugou.
The family grew closer to the courthouse and a rush of sound could be faintly heard. As they pulled closer, the sound grew louder: It was the media. Izuku nearly started hyperventilating but Watanabe who was sitting beside him, caught him firmly by the shoulders and gave him an encouraging smile. Izuku nodded and took a few deep breaths. He noticed Watanabe's body tense up a bit too. While he had been joking around with Izuku for the entirety of the morning to get his mind off the case, Izuku knew he was also anxious. The cameramen started banging on the windows. Ryuzen's face turned into an angry scowl. Thankfully the police shoved the media behind lines. Tsukauchi opened the door and hurriedly ushered them through the doors before the media could ask anything, "Uh sorry about that. The media is a bit too excited. I'll have one of the officers get the evidence and papers from your car, Inko-san! I have already submitted paperwork for all the evidence to the judge,"
"Thank you, Tsukauchi-san!" Inko said.
"People are already inside. Your friend is here too," Tsukauchi told Izuku, "And not to put pressure, but 3 heroes are here too as witnesses. Since the case includes minors, it is taking place behind closed doors. The 3 pro heroes, the police commissioner and I are here to validate anything that might be leaked."
Izuku crashed into a flurry of thoughts, "Oh my god! Oh my god! Three heroes are here for my case! AHHHHH" he screamed mentally.
"For the betterment of my cousin's mental health, may I ask who the heroes are?" Watanabe asked. Izuku turned red and slightly slouched in embarrassment. Watanabe gave his cousin a teasing smile.
Tsukauchi smiled slightly, "Well, the defendants got to choose one hero, the prosecutors one, and the court chose another. We chose Principal Nedzu of UA. The court chose Eraserhead, an underground hero and the defendants chose Endeavour..." Tsukauchi's voice dropped a little as he mentioned Endeavor.
"What!? They went out of their way to get Endeavour just so they can have a high-ranking hero support their claims?" Inko demanded angrily.
"I just found out today myself! But Nedzu is here too, so I don't think he will be able to do much,"
"Why did you pick Nedzu though?" Watanabe asked thoughtfully.
"Hmm?" Inko turned, "Well he had built UA against discrimination much before that article came about. He was discriminated against himself too. So, I thought he'd like to help in the case as well. He was rather enthusiastic to help actually."
"Whoa, you guys got UA's principal AND Endeavour to come for the case!?"
"Ah, Denki. Nice to meet you, Mr. Kaminari, Mrs. Kaminari. I am Midoriya Izuku," Izuku said politely.
Denki's mother smiled, "Well, glad to see that you are as nice as Denki said," Izuku blushed. "Unlike a certain someone else,"
"Oh come on, how would I know that Denki would go on a sugar rush from the chocolate?" Watanabe grinned maniacally.
"That was not even the worst part young man! You kept supplying him even after his sugar rush started,"
"Buuut, I did clean up the vomit in my defense!" Watanabe smiled.
Kaminari's mother smiled at that, "Is that why you haven't been to our house for 2 months? Cuz you are afraid I'll make you do some chores?"
Watanabe pouted. Meanwhile, Izuku stood in shock at seeing Watanabe bicker with Denki's mother like they were best friends. Kaminari's father noticed this and laughed, "Don't worry, it's become a normal thing. You'll end up bickering like that at one point too. Much like how Kaminari made Ryuzen's life hell after he forgot his anniversary,"
"I blame you for that!" Ryuzen accused his friend who laughed back, "Your son is the one who made Denki like that. How is that my fault?"
Ryuzen smiled devilishly, "Well don't worry, I have TWO agents to infiltrate you now!"
"Izuku wouldn't... Watanabe might as well have infiltrated already"
"Izuku will too!"
It was at this point that Inko decided to stop all the friendly bickering, "The judge is here, so we should get inside," she stated in an authoritative voice.
"Ah, you must be Izuku's mother. Nice to meet you," Kaminari's mother introduced.
"Nice to meet you too. I am glad you could come in,"
"O no, it's no problem. Anything for Denki's friends!"
"Yes, Denki is a very nice boy..." Inko started gossiping as they headed into the courtroom. They opened the doors and headed in. The first thing that Izuku did... was nearly faint as he saw three pro-heroes sitting around and all three were popular. Granted Eraserhead was an underground hero, but still, his quirk was absolutely fascinating.
Meanwhile, Watanabe smiled chaotically at Endeavour, something that gave Denki the urge to move 20 kilometers away from him.
"Ah, Inko-san! Good to see you made it on time," Nedzu said in his usual cheery voice as he moved to welcome them, "These two must be your son and nephew!"
Izuku turned red with anxiousness, "H-hi I am Midoriya Izuku,"
Nedzu nodded and turned towards Watanabe who stared at him with an incredulous look on his face. Nedzu stood awkwardly trying to fathom what had Watanabe shell shocked.
"Um, bro, he's waiting for you to speak?" Denki whispered to his friend.
Watanabe got out of his stupor and rubbed his head in embarrassment, "Sorry for staring, it's just that your fur looks sooo soft!"
Nedzu blinked a few times at that remark trying to comprehend Watanabe's words while Kaminari and Izuku facepalmed. Natsume seemed to want to drag her son out of the room. Finally, Nedzu regained his composure and gave Watanabe a chaotic smile of his own, "Thank you for the compliment. I use Keratin daily to keep my fur pristine. Today's a special day so I thought I'd use a better brand. I am an animal but even I have my standards. Go on you can touch the fur if you want," Nedzu spoke excitedly as he dragged a chair and beckoned for Watanabe to sit beside him. Watanabe didn't waste a moment and soon Nedzu was giving his entire fur care routine while Watanabe nodded excitedly and petted Nedzu's fur.
Everyone sweatdropped, "Why am I even surprised? Of course, he'd pull something like this," Tsukauchi muttered to himself. It was at that point that Izuku decided to take the ridiculousness of the situation even further and decided to offer better alternatives for Nedzu's fur care. The courtroom fell into a silence of disbelief as Nedzu took out a notepad to start noting down Izuku's points. The others awkwardly sat down on the other chairs not sure how to react. Watanabe beckoned for Denki to sit beside him and smiled chaotically, "And that's how you get an influential figure on your side," he whispered.
Denki sweatdropped, "Even so, targeting the fur was way too risky,"
"To be honest, I really did think the fur was really soft and fluffy. Getting him to be on our side like that just sort of happened," Watanabe confessed.
"Sure, of course, it did," Kaminari said in a less than amused voice. The two friends stopped short as they heard a loud sipping noise behind them. The two turned slowly and found a pale face before them. The man had sunken eyes, skin pale as a ghost, and an unshaven face. He seemed... for lack of a better word, homeless. However, there was something about the man that seemed professional. He seemed to radiate an expression of annoyance all about him but the most off-putting thing was his concealed anger.
"Ah, Eraserhead, you're here!" Nedzu motioned to Aizawa to take a seat.
Aizawa grunted in reply and simply sat down. Watanabe moved slightly closer to Izuku, "He's a pro?"
"YES! That's Eraserhead. He's an underground hero, so I guess he needs to fit in, right?" Izuku replied. Denki nodded in answer. Watanabe seemed to take that for his answer.
The next moment Bakugou entered along with his parents and a stranger. Inko moved to greet Mitsuki and Masaru. Izuku's eyes met with Katsuki's. The two stared in silence at each other before the stranger led him away to another section to sit. Watanabe chose not to even acknowledge his presence, giving him one quick glance. He smirked as he noticed that his hands were still not healed.
"Boy, he sure is a delight," Kaminari commented sarcastically.
"At least, he seems to be better than before,"
"Wait seriously? Boy, you guys really held back when you described him,"
Watanabe shrugged in reply. They waited in a sort of forced silence as Inko and Mitsuki talked about the details of the case when Watanabe heard Mitsuki mention that the other stranger was in fact his counselor, who was there to help him. He chuckled slightly at that.
Izuku rolled his eyes, "Look who's chuckling. Since Endeavour's here, you probably need someone to keep you in line too." Watanabe pouted in reply. Kaminari added salt to injury, "Nah, Aunt Natsume, Aunt Inko, AND my mom is here. He wouldn't step that far out of line,"
Bakugou stared at the three friends from his seat. His anger concealed. He knew that if he didn't behave, the idiot counselor would pester him longer. Granted he did make some good points but Katsuki didn't need someone to help him. He would climb by himself and be the undisputable number 1 hero. Stupid Deku would always be a pebble, no matter who his friends were. That yellow-haired extra looked like an idiot too. And that idiot cousin of his got lucky too.
The judge walked in with the police commissioner at that moment. Everyone stood in respect. The judge moved to the front of the room and sat down. He gave a slight nod to allow everyone else to sit as well.
"Alright, I have been put in charge of this case. You may refer to me as Fuji. We'll get the case started as soon as the typewriter gets here,"
At this, the police commissioner stood up and voiced his concerns, "Sir, I had put in a form to get someone trustworthy to be our typewriter for today, due to the severity of the case and-"
"Yes, yes. The court has gotten someone trustworthy. In fact, he's here, I think," Fuji replied as the door to the courtroom opened. A familiar spike of yellow hair entered. Izuku, Watanabe, and Kaminari did a double-take. Watanabe noticed Eraserhead's face scrunched up into surprise as well.
"Meet Yagi Toshinori. He's a part-time social worker who helps with abuse cases. On top of that, he's also All Might's secretary who helps with his paperwork. All Might himself has vouched for him, so he'll be our typewriter today." Fuji said.
It took great physical strain for Watanabe and Izuku to not burst into a fit of chuckles at that excuse. With great composure, they remained emotionless as Yagi passed them with a knowing smile. Unfortunately, the two forgot about Denki, "Yagi-sensei! What are you doing here!? You never said you knew All Might!"
"Shiiiit," Izuku and Watanabe both thought as they turned cold.
"Yo-you know each other?" The judge asked surprised. On the other hand, Aizawa gave Yagi a disbelieving angry look.
"Ah, the three always go for a run in the morning and happened to stumble on my own jogging route. They saw me practicing my martial arts and asked me to join in. Since then, I've been helping them," Yagi excused himself.
The parents turned to stare at their children with disbelief at this new revelation. Fortunately, Inko came to the rescue, "We can discuss that later. The case at hand is much more important," Thankfully no one opposed and the judge continued, "Ah the three pro-heroes are here too. Eraserhead, you have been called on behalf of the court to combat other forms of criminal activities in educational institutes. I am not incriminating Aldera, I'm just stating a fact. As an underground hero, you are best equipped to handle such cases, so I hope you will pay close attention to this case,"
Aizawa nodded in reply, "Yes sir,"
"Alright, we will start the court proceedings now. The defendants, please present your case," the judge ordered as Yagi sat down on his typewriter, giving a quick smile to the three friends.
Aldera's lawyer, Suchi, began to formally explain the aspects of the case while Katsuki stared daggers at Deku and the two extras. How the hell did they get All Might's secretary to help them train. That means, maybe even All Might himself helped them at some point. Katsuki clenched his hands harder. His counselor noticed his sudden erratic behavior and asked, "Any problem,"
"Tsk," Katuski growled and moved away. However, the counselor caught his eyes and talked to him in a warning tone, "Katuski, we have been making good progress. Don't go and undo all of it. This testimony is your first step to becoming better. Don't jeopardize it,"
"Hn,"
The counselor sighed, knowing he wouldn't be able to get anything out of Katsuki, and instead focused himself back onto the trial.
Suchi ended the formal presenting of the case before the judge spoke, "I understand. Who would the prosecutor like to call as a witness first?"
"Your honor, I would like to call Bakugou Katsuki to the stand along with his counselor to help him," Inko asked.
The judge nodded, "Permission granted,"
Katsuki growled slightly but stood up and walked to the stand with his counselor, "Katuski, I would like you to answer some simple questions for me," Inko said. Katsuki nodded. "But first, you admit that you, in fact, used your quirk to attack Midoriya Izuku multiple times."
Katsuki wanted to scream that he was right in attacking but a lump formed in his throat. He knew that was not the case. He ignored the sudden mix of regret and anxiety and nodded, "Yes,"
"Good. Your honor, we have already settled the quirk-induced bullying with his parents outside of school, so we will not be upholding that part today,"
The judge nodded, "Yes, I have gotten the related paperwork,"
Inko gave a slight nod, "Now Katuski, please elaborate on why you bullied Izuku, there had to be a reason,"
Katsuki's eyes twitched silently, "BECAUSE HE WAS WEAK!" Katsuki yelled angrily. The judge sat up in surprise. Yagi and Nedzu both furrowed their eyes while Aizawa seemed to have already disregarded any option for Bakugou's redemption. Meanwhile, Watanabe and Kaminari both looked like they wanted to strangle Katsuki right then and there. Katsuki's counselor moved to intervene but Inko put her hand up to stop him, "Please continue,"
"IZUKU WAS QUIRKLESS AND THEREFORE USELESS!"
"And who told you this? The teachers?"
"YES!" Katsuki declared. Inko smirked, "So if your teachers said that having a quirk like, say, spring-like legs, you'd believe it is a useless quirk,"
"OBVIOUSLY THAT'S A WEAK QUIRK! WHAT DO YOU EXPECT TO DO WITH SPRINGY LEGS!? YOU CAN JUST JUMP AROUND!"
Inko smirked again, "Is it? You could coil up the springs so much that you speed into someone with the force of a brick wall. You can continuously use the springs to jump off buildings to disorient the enemy or to rescue people. It is no way, a useless quirk,"
"Your honor, what's the point of this?" Suchi intervened.
"There is a point Suchi-san. I think Katsuki got it already," Inko smiled as he saw Katsuki shut his mouth and actually think. 2 sentences, that was all it took to bring down Katsuki's ego. "Please, Katsuki continue,"
Surprising everyone, most of all Watanabe, this time Katsuki replied in a much smaller voice, "The teachers told us that people with weak quirks are useless and since De- Izuku didn't have one, he was the most useless one of all. They encouraged the rest of us to beat them up as training to get into hero schools. They said that we needed to learn how to take care of small fries. And we-," Katsuki gulped as he felt his tears rise. He felt like puking all over as the horrible picture of how he had tortured Izuku and so many others hit him like a truck. Gulping down the rising vomit, he choked up and continued, "W-we always picked on them because the teachers told us to. We never thought anything else of it," Bakugou finished in a whisper as tears streamed down his face.
Inko gave him a pitied look, "No further questions,"
The judge who also seemed saddened by the empathetic testimony nodded, "Would the defendant like to question?"
The furious lawyer shook his head. The judge nodded, "You may go. I hope you will be able to redeem yourself well," he added as his parting words. Katsuki sniffed slightly. He wiped his tears off and put on his normal angry facade and returned to his seat.
"Watanabe was right when he explained Katsuki's character. He is egoistic and rash and his ego won't allow him to apologize to Izuku. But... from what I just saw, no matter what he says, he is regretful of his actions. That is the first step towards redemption," Yagi smiled inwardly, "Perhaps Watanabe was right in saying that he needed to be brought down a peg before he could be redeemed," Yagi wasn't happy with Katsuki's actions but he was pleased that he had the heart to change.
Meanwhile, Aizawa was currently unsure of his feelings about Bakugou. At first, he seemed to be rash, selfish and egotistical, a mix of the qualities Aizawa hated. However, his words and actions at the end spoke much differently. However, if Katsuki was under in his class at the moment, he would have expelled him. But, Aizawa also knew that he had the potential to change, as he had just shown. Only time would tell if he was correct.
Nedzu seemed to reserve his thoughts on Katsuki for the time being. He felt that he was an... interesting specimen. He seemed like another Endeavour in the making but he already seemed to be changing his thought process. If he was willing, Nedzu would help him get over his issues, that is if he made it to UA. In no way was he going to let another Endeavour walkout as a pro-hero.
Speaking of Endeavour, he was quite angry, "That child seemed like he was strong, in both will and strength. But he was just a sissy who cried just because he hurt someone," "Hmph," Endeavour grunted disapprovingly as Katsuki returned to his seat much to the annoyance of Watanabe.
"Well, he seems to have redeemed himself already," Kaminari whispered to Watanabe. Izuku was still in slight shock at having seen Katsuki cry over his regrets.
"Perhaps," Watanabe whispered, "But that's not enough. He still has to pay. As long as he doesn't get over his ego and apologize, I'll make him pay!" Watanabe asserted aggressively.
Denki decided not to argue but Izuku, who had come back to reality, pleaded, "But Watanabe, he did show that he regretted his actions. Can't you drop it?"
Nedzu's ears tingled as he moved closer to eavesdrop. The discussion seemed to be interesting. He heard Watanabe whisper back, "But that's not enough, is it? If that was the case, why do we have prisons or prison time? We could just have people estimate whether the criminal is regretful and drop the charges. Why do we still jail them? Even if society was the reason, they turned a villain, they didn't have to do crimes like murder, did they? This may not be the same thing but for me, it is as important,"
Izuku and Kaminari were taken aback at that answer but Nedzu smiled. His thought processing really was as wonderful as Yagi said. He was prepared to forgive but not without consequences. He might forgive petty little things entirely, but he would make sure someone would pay for something very bad. Nedzu could see why Yagi didn't choose Watanabe as his successor. He believed a symbol of success would save everyone and unconditionally forgive them but Watanabe was closer to the definition of what a hero should be in reality. "Here's to hoping these three get to UA. Then we can have some real fun," Nedzu thought to himself.
"Alright, who would the defendant like to call as a witness?" The judge asked after he had finished noting down some points.
"Your honor, I would like to ask all the staff, Yes or No questions as a whole to speed things up,"
"Very well, ask away," The judge gave permission.
"Are any of the things Bakugou Katsuki said true?"
"No!"
"So, he is lying?"
"Yes!"
"Your honor, I'd like to call the principal of Aldera to the stand to answer some questions,"
"Granted. Inko-san do you have any objections to the previous two questions?"
"No, your honor. But, I would like to point out that their answers seemed to be pre-planned,"
"Objection! Inko-san is assuming that just because my clients answered as opposed to here case, they are automatically telling a lie,"
"Objection sustained! Inko-san, please refrain from accusation without substantial proof," The judge warned. Inko nodded.
"Principal, why do you think that Bakugou has stated such lies about Aldera?"
"I believe that all the media attention on the case got into his head and he decided to lie about his involvement. We have seen the same thing with the sludge incident. The child begs for media attention."
"You know what, I just realized, Bakugou is fine. This piece of shit is way worse," Watanabe growled. However, his voice was loud enough for the entire court to hear. Natsume shook her head disapprovingly. She knew that Watanabe was right but the situation did not offer the place to say such things.
"You better watch your mouth, boy! Innocent until proven guilty," the principal spat.
"Judge-san, he's scaring me," Watanabe said in the scared, pitiful voice of a child. Kaminari and Izuku ducked down to hide their chuckles. Natsume seemed to want to crawl under her chair in embarrassment while Ryuzen sat straight as if proclaiming proudly, that Watanabe was his son.
"Principal, please refrain from making threatening accusations to a minor," The judge said, slightly amused and annoyed at the same time.
"B-but he's the one who," The principal tried to argue.
"Innocent until proven guilty, no?" Watanabe smiled chaotically.
Yagi spit a fountain of blood all of a sudden. "That smile, why does it look so... familiar and torturous?" Aizawa thought to himself. That's when he noticed Nedzu sitting beside Watanabe with an equally chaotic smile due to the situation, "Oh God no! How does someone have the same level of chaos as Nedzu? That should be illegal," Aizawa panicked. The smile seemed to put even Endeavour on edge.
"Moving on," The judge turned to Suchi, "That's it for my questions, your honor," Fuji nodded, "Does the prosecution want to ask any questions?"
"Yes, your honor,"
Fuji motioned for Inko to carry on.
"Principal, you say that Katsuki is lying. However, the police have gone to several households of students of Aldera and many have collaborated both Izuku and Katsuki's side of the story. We have even submitted their signed confessions to the court. What do you have to say about that?"
The principal grunted but did not speak. He knew he couldn't refute every single student. Inko smiled, pleased with herself, "No further questions,"
The judge nodded and motioned the principal to return to his seat. He noted down some things before looking up.
"Your honor, I would also like to call Midoriya Izuku to the stand," Suchi asked.
The judge nodded and asked Izuku to the stand. Watanabe and Kaminari's mood immediately turned sour while Inko's face grew more serious and grim. Aizawa was a bit pleased, to be honest. He was irritated with Watanabe's behavior and chaotic nature but working with Nedzu for years helped him understand that he must be very smart to manipulate people into falling for his chaotic traps. Not to mention he had a knack for gaining unlikely allies. Wait did the boy get him on his side too? Aizawa pondered; technically he was on their side because Aldera was a criminal organization. Aizawa huffed to himself, he was overthinking things. He probably wouldn't even meet these children again.
"Midoriya Izuku, would you please tell me the nature of your 'bullying'?" Suchi asked.
Izuku was about to speak but he felt his panic rise and began to hyperventilate. The enormous burden of the case suddenly weighed on him and he began to see darkness. Fortunately, his mother grasped his shoulder tightly right then and gave him an assuring sad smile. He looked across the room and saw both Watanabe and Kaminari also giving him determined looks.
"Are you ok? We can reschedule," The judge offered.
Izuku bit his lip and shook his head before replying, "Since I am quirkless, I was... I was bullied by others, often beaten up so badly that I couldn't walk back home properly. I hid it from my mom all these years, so she wouldn't worry. I was also suicide-baited,"
At that last sentence, Watanabe turned red with rage. He had not known about the suicide baiting.
"I-Izuku is joking right?" Kaminari asked with disbelief. Watanabe shook his head vigorously. He looked around and caught several of the teachers and Katsuki sinking into their seats. Inko also had not known about that last part, it seemed, and stood with shock, her mouth agape. Natsume was on the verge of tears. Kaminari's electricity was crackling all around him and Watanabe's eyes had turned vermillion. Luckily, both of their respective fathers calmed them down immediately with a look that forbade them from acting violently. Watanabe growled and clenched his hands so tightly, his skin drew blood. Nedzu and the police commissioner seemed horrified too. Aizawa was also enraged, and like Watanabe caught the teachers and Katsuki slinking in their seats. He turned towards Endeavour and became angrier as he saw him look uninterested, oh he was going on a murder spree if more shit came up.
"And you expect us to believe that your mother found out about the bullying right when the viral discrimination article was released,"
"My mom didn't find out, Watanabe did," Izuku replied, rubbing the tears off, "Your honor, may I also call Hattori Watanabe to the other stand so that I can cross-question both of them at once,"
The judge hesitated since both were minors, "If Inko-san allows," the judge ruled.
Inko furrowed her eyes in thought as to what she should do. Finally, she asked Watanabe, "Are you ok with coming up to the stand beside me?"
"Yes," Watanabe replied with an exceptionally icy tone. He glared at the Aldera's staff as he went up.
"Now, then Hattori, can you please tell me how you figured out that he was being bullied," Suchi asked with a villainous smile.
A tick grew on Watanabe's head, he dearly wanted to punch this scumbag of a lawyer but he knew nothing good would come of it. He took a few calming breaths before replying, his icy tone still present, "As you are aware, my cousin was involved in the sludge incident as well. Therefore, my uncle, Izuku's father asked my family to live with him and Aunt Inko. We agreed. At dinner, I noticed that his arms were burnt. I thought that Katsuki had done them while he was under sludge's control but all the victims were provided treatment. Since he had not received treatment for the burns, it was obvious he hid them. I confronted him and he blurted everything out,"
"And you expect us to believe that you are so observant? You have even talked so formally as you have memorized everything for this question,"
"Watch your hypocritical tone, Suchi-san," Watanabe replied, "Wasn't it you who said, that just because the answers oppose the case, it doesn't have to be a lie? You should really be careful with your double-standard behavior, most of all in a court,"
The court grew silent as everyone registered Watanabe's veiled insult towards the lawyer. Suchi turned red with embarrassment while Nedzu's desire to teach this kid grew higher. Even Aizawa was slightly impressed. Watanabe had not struck him as the sort of person that could be diplomatic or put someone down while talking so formally.
"Just answer the question! How do you expect us to believe that someone of your age is so observant when your quirk is not intelligence-based," Suchi demanded.
The judge was about to intervene and scold Suchi for his tone but Watanabe responded faster, "You look very professional, Suchi-san. Polished shoes, nice watch, suit, the whole deal. However, your collar is frayed, you have hidden the frayed part of your shirt under your suit. Obviously, you are well paid, because the suit, shoes, and watches are all new but you have neglected them. Why? Because you are an alcoholic. You do not have a wedding ring, so you aren't married, but there is an indent on the ring finger, suggesting there was a ring, so maybe divorced. You do not seem to have kids, however, I am not sure. However, your tie is stained on the edge with alcohol. Cigarette ash and nicotine have stained your fingers too, and don't get me started on your breath!"
The lawyer grew red with anger, "I did not ask you to divulge information on my personal life!"
Watanabe didn't even flinch, "Judge-san, he didn't ask questions about my observance. Instead, he chose to ridicule me and put down my intelligence. I thought a live demonstration of my observant nature was required,"
The judge chuckled but quickly covered it into a cough. With a smile, he said, "That is true, Suchi-san. I suggest you pick your battles wisely next time." Inko smiled, this is why she had put in Watanabe as one of the prime witnesses. He would tear into Aldera's defense ruthlessly, without mercy, and would eat away at their confidence. Plus he was a minor so the defendants couldn't go after him. Meanwhile, Nedzu was pleasantly surprised, he had heard Yagi talk highly of Watanabe's observant nature but this, this defied his expectations.
Aizawa was also impressed, "He used his status as a minor to get away with whatever he says, knowing full well they can't hold him to it. What's more, he used his intelligence and ridiculed the lawyer and reminded him that he's a kid to make him feel small. The case might be a landslide victory for the prosecutors but this kid... he's turning it into a massacre," Aizawa smiled, this kid definitely had potential. He might be as chaotic as Nedzu but he had immense potential.
However, in the midst of all this, Endeavour spoke, "Hn, just using words isn't going to help you in the real world, kid,"
The court grew silent as the number 2 hero spoke. "Now, now Endeavour-san, such words in a court against a minor! That simply isn't-"
"And who are you to say that?" Watanabe interrupted. The court fell into stunned silence. Izuku looked petrified while Inko, Ryuzen, and Denki smirked, leave it to Watanabe to talk down the number 2 hero. Aizawa dug his face into his capture scarf, it would be unprofessional to show him emotions on a sleeve. Fortunately, Nedzu didn't care much about professionalism and let out a small chuckle. He knew that Watanabe was the one who had insulted Endeavour on the TV interview, so he knew this would be a good show.
Endeavour was a bit taken aback that a kid was talking back to him. Getting over his surprise, he reasserted his angry demeanor and replied, "You know who you are talking to brat!?"
The judge tried to calm things down but Watanabe was not backing down either, "Yeah. Someone who acts like a hero but is actually just after the fame!"
"How dare you! I have the most solved cases as a pro!"
"Your solution to all cases just involves setting fire on everything, without control. So proud of your quirk being but you can't even use it right, it's a mystery how you even are at number 2 position," Watanabe teased with a wonderfully acted angry tone.
Endeavour shook with rage. "What the hell is this kid thinking, going, and insulting a top hero known for his anger issues?" Aizawa thought. But that's when both Nedzu and Aizawa noticed Watanabe smiling cheekily. "What the-" That's when Endeavour burst into flame and growled loudly in anger. The people around him moved away in fear. Aizawa noticed Watanabe smirking, "Was that his plan? To have Endeavour kill him!?" Aizawa sighed and got ready to use his quirk but Nedzu stopped him, "Follow Watanabe's eyes," he said simply with a grin. Aizawa was confused but did so and noticed Watanabe staring upwards as if waiting for something. That's when his eyes widened, "Sprinklers!"
On cue, the sprinklers started. There was a loud sizzling as the water put out Endeavour's flames. Kaminari yelped in surprise and lost control of his quirk. The electricity conducted through the water, frying the Aldera teachers and knocking Endeavour out cold.
Aizawa was shocked. He had just witnessed a teenager knock out the number 2 hero. Nedzu was also surprised but was smiling, "To be expected. He is their friend after all. The thing is... his electricity only harmed the Aldera staff and Endeavour... did he purposely control it and act surprised as a cover?"
Izuku was equally shocked and seemed to be on the verge of passing out, seeing Endeavour knocked out by his friend. Watanabe had a proud expression on his face but was also astonished, "You took down Endeavour!" he exclaimed.
"I took down Endeavour!" Kaminari exclaimed back, "Does that mean I'm the number 2 hero now?"
"Er, I don't think it works that way," Izuku replied.
"So what!? I'm stronger!" Denki replied proudly.
The judge spoke, "Order! Please no quirks in the courtroom!" The judge stopped short as he noticed a table? And it was levitating over Inko's desk and all the evidence.
"Inko-san, please no quirk usage in the courtroom,"
"Oh sorry, your honor. I needed to protect our evidence and thought that we could be excused for it,"
The judge sighed, "For this one time, I will forgive you and let you stay inside the courtroom." The judge said, "Wait where's Yagi-san?" The judge asked, not seeing Toshinori anywhere in sight.
"Here," Yagi said from beneath the table where he was hiding.
The judge sweatdropped, "Er... what are you doing there?"
"I was afraid the water would drench my papers and the typewriter," Yagi replied. Yagi was also shocked at the way Kaminari had just taken down Endeavour. He knew that Denki was just passing it off as an accident. If it really was an accident, it would have damaged everything.
"Problem children," Aizawa groaned as he saw Nedzu's grin grow wider.
The judge was pondering on what to with Endeavour's unconscious body when he suddenly groaned and limped as he got up, "What-what just happened," The voice of someone laughing could be heard. To absolutely no one's surprise, it was Nedzu, "What happened, my old student, is that you were just knocked unconscious by someone in middle school, hahaha," he laughed hysterically. Watanabe grinned, there was no way Endeavour could talk back to Nedzu. He was right, Endeavour turned red and quietly sat down on a chair, his hero suit tarnished and burn marks on several parts of his body from the electricity.
"Since the media is outside, we will have some of the janitors clean up the water, for now. The court proceedings will be paused momentarily. Do not leave the room," The judge said and banged his gavel.
Watanabe and Izuku got up and rushed to Denki. "That was so not an 'accident'," Watanabe grinned.
"Duh! Everyone would have gotten electrocuted then," he grinned back happily.
Unbeknownst to the three happy friends someone besides Endeavour was watching them with a scowl: Bakugou.
Bakugou watched them with an angry expression but in reality, he was puzzled. He knew that he was angry- but why? Endeavor did deserve it. Who gets riled up over who is stronger. Katsuki stopped his thoughts as he realized how hypocritical he sounded. He hated how his therapist was making him actually realize how he felt. Heck, he wasn't even sure if he actually hated him, he was... thankful? "That extra is nothing special. Even I could take down Endeavour," Katsuki tried to reason with himself. But a small voice asked in his mind, "Could you? Even Watanabe took you down," Bakugou clenched his teeth. He wanted to argue that he was not serious against Watanabe but that was a lie. He was fully ready to blast him away at that moment, whether he lived or not was another matter. But now he actually felt sorry. Then there was that yellow-haired guy. He just fried the number 2 hero like it was nothing. Why would such strong people hang around with that quirkless Deku!? Bakugou looked down at his hands, he suddenly remembered all the analyses Izuku had given him to make his quirks stronger. He felt vomit rise in his mouth as he realized he used moves that Izuku had thought of against him. He punched himself in the thigh, he hated himself.
His therapist looked at him concerned. He was glad that he was making progress, but the sudden rush of emotions was not healthy for him, "Bakugou, do you want to talk about it?" he asked concerned. Masaru and Mitsuki who were sitting beside him was also worried.
The old Bakugou would have shouted at the poor therapist and gone off into a rage, but at present, Katsuki could only say one thing, "Am I actually the useless one? All I ever did was bully people, I never acted like a hero, like All Might. I am basically a villain," he declared.
The therapist was a bit taken aback, he was unsure of how he to handle the situation. Luckily for him, Masaru decided to handle it, "You are not useless or a villain, Katsuki. However, your actions are something to be ashamed of. It's good you are at least regretting it, however, you still need to apologize to Izuku. A proper apology,"
Katsuki looked away. Masaru smiled slightly, "I'm not saying right away. Give it time but I do expect you to give a heart-felt apology to him later. He may have forgiven you unconditionally but I think even you know, that you won't accept the forgiveness until you apologize,"
Katsuki didn't reply and started to cry silently. Masaru sighed and pulled his son in for a hug. Watanabe had moved away from Kaminari and Izuku with a smile in the midst of all this and allowed them to converse. He was listening to what Bakugou was thinking. While he hadn't heard any of his thoughts in his mind, Katsuki's last sentence stuck with him. He wouldn't acknowledge it but he was starting to feel a bit sorry for him. All of a sudden, his grudge seemed idiotic. Watanabe shook his head, he wasn't going to let Katsuki off that easy, no matter what.