Notes: Alrighty people, got a new chapter up now! but before... let's clear a few things.

First, Shishido. Once again, canon has seemingly made my interpretation of him obsolete. He is certainly more crazed than I planned (And i thought that was just a mouth guard, not his actual teeth!) So certain things about him won't change in my story, just a heads up.

Second... there have been some crazy things happening in the manga lately, and I ask please don't be asking about that in here. first, it spoils all non manga readers, and I don't want confusion and other things happening for readers.

anywho, enjoy!

School that day seemed to be a blur for Katara, not interested in learning anything that day. Half the time she must've had her chin laying down on her arms, blankly staring at the front of the class as Aizawa went through whatever lecture was being given. It wasn't really a surprise for her, since her thoughts focused on the argument she had the night previous. After what she said, she was already assuming her time at his agency may be over now, but she would deal with that. After keeping silent on her feelings, it certainly felt better to just say what she felt.

Her eyes widened as the ending bell suddenly rang, sighing as the school day had come to an end. She grabbed her bag and followed the others out of class, rubbing her head as they all exited the class. Shoto beside her eyed her curiously as they walked down the main hall and out the doors. "Hey, are you okay?" He asked.

"Huh?" She mumbled, turning to look at him. "I'm good. I Just had a lot on my mind today."

Shoto gave a small frown, obviously this had something to do with his father. She frowned as well, not wanting to talk about it right now. "I'm alright, Shoto. I just don't wanna think about hero work right now."

It was as blunt answer as she could give without mentioning Endeavor, and that was all Shoto needed to hear. It was lucky enough the others around didn't hear them speaking, because all they were going on about was their internships and hero work. In fact, Bakugo wasn't even here today, having stayed out late with Mirko fighting villains and crashed at her place. Katara herself just wanted a day to take her mind off of everything else. As she looked at Shoto, she couldn't help but feel her cheeks warm as she remembered what came her way tomorrow.

"So, what's the plan for dinner?"

Shoto's own cheeks warmed slightly when she asked that, glancing over at her smiling his way. He thought back to the many ideas that Mineta was throwing his way last night, wanting to finalize them before he revealed them to her. He coughed and forced a smile himself. "It's a surprise. I hope you'll really like it."

"A surprise?" Katara giggled at his bashfulness, herself somewhat curious what he was trying to do for her. Even if it was just a picnic outside, she was excited to see what was going to happen. "Alright then. I guess I'll wait and see what you have planned for me, Shoto." As they arrived back to the dorms, she let out a small sigh and nudged him. "Hey… I know we are doing our date tomorrow… but do you mind if I just have tonight to myself? I just kind of feel tired and want to relax alone for a bit."

"Alone?" Shoto asked, "Are you alright?"

Sighing, Katara gave a small shrug. "It's just… I want tonight to just clear my head, please. I don't want to think about a lot of things right now. And I want tomorrow to be special for us with no distractions."

While he was disappointed, Shoto didn't want to bother her if she was too frustrated, wanting to hopefully leave his father out of their conversations for now. Also, figured this would be the perfect time to figure everything out right now, leaving him time to clear up what the plan was. "Alright then. But, if you need anything or want to talk, I'm here, alright?"

Walking into their class dorm after the others, Katara gave a small smile and nodded, leaning and giving him a kiss . "I really appreciate it. I'll let you know if I need anything."

Once everyone started going their own ways, Katara joined the elevator with Tsu and Kirishima to go up to their rooms. Now that he was alone, Shoto took a deep breath and turned towards the kitchen, surprised to see Tenya, Aoyama and Mineta all staring at him together. "Such a strange sight…" he muttered under his breath, but knew exactly what they were thinking. Shaking his head, he walked over towards them and exhaled out. "So… I was hoping we could talk about tomorrow…"

"Of course! You had best know the entire plan so you don't stumble over yourself!" Tenya declared with a strong chop. "This is a special day for Katara, so it better be at your best!"

"What do you think I'm trying to do?" Shoto mumbled out.

"Ah, the blossoms of romance are strong for you two, Todoroki!" Aoyama happily stated, "No matter what, she shall fall into your arms in love after this!"

Tenya's eyes widened at the words he heard, his face turning red in confusion. "Aoyama! Love?! That… those are strong words to be using for them!"

"Please, take that stick out your butt, dude…" Mineta said as he stepped forward cracking his knuckles and grinning. "Just leave it to me and it will all good."

While he was somewhat doubtful trusting Mineta still, Shoto had to admit he seemed like he had the plan set pretty well. "So… you said you had some ideas for what we can do?"

"Oh yes…" Mineta chuckled, "but for this, we gotta bring the girls in for this now."

At hearing that, the remaining few girls around the living room, Mina, Jiro, and Uraraka all turned in confusion to what he said. "Uh, bring in for what?" Uraraka asked.

"We are doing a special date for the guy right here," Mineta pointed at Shoto, making the subject teen blush, "He's planning a dinner date for her, and we are gonna set it up for them!"

"What?!" Mina's eyes widened in excitement as she jumped up from the couch. "OOOH! So cute!"

"A date?!" Uraraka giggled and blushed. "That's sweet!"

"Yep, because apparently this guy isn't creative enough himself." Mineta taunted, earning a glare from the fire and ice teen. "Our plan is to let these two go on a nice walk, and then we set up an amazing candle and lantern lit dinner outside. We play the roles of cooks and servers for the pair."

As the other two girls eyes lit up in how romantic that sounded, Jiro stared dumbfounded at the purple headed boy in confusion. "You came up with this? How?"

"Hey, I know the tricks to a girls heart when you need to sweep them off their feet." Mineta grinned… only to start sweating as Jiro continued blankly staring at him. "What? Do you doubt that I can be charming?"

"Yes…" she bluntly stated.

While he continued grinning, his eyes shifted back and forth trying to avoid her, only to look back and have her staring him down still. "Okay okay, this was Shoji's idea! He and Ojiro chose that over my maid cafe dining!"

"Uh huh…" Jiro sighed, "Figured."

"Mineta! Disgraceful for you to claim Shoji's ideas as your own!" Tenya scolded him.

Frowning, Mineta turned away to avoid the glares from the other two girls and pouted to himself. "I still helped with the after dinner idea… a movie outside on the grass."

While upset with his previous idea, Mina had to admit the next part sounded pretty good. "Hmm… now that could be romantic too! I can make the popcorn for them!"

"Actually…" Shoto suddenly remembered the request he had been asked earlier. While it was certainly a surprise he was asked, he honestly wasn't opposed to it either, allowing someone else to break any awkward silence moments. "Midorya was asking if he could join as well, taking Yaoyorozu to dinner."

Everyone's eyes widened in surprise hearing that, now realizing they weren't just serving food for one couple. "Oh, we got a double date happening now?! This is even more exciting!" Mina giggled and threw her hands up. "We get to set up dinner and entertainment for two pairs now!"

Sighing, Uraraka pumped her fists and smiled. "Dinner has to be done right! We should have a bunch of things ready to cook! Make it like a real restaurant menu for them!"

"Hmm," Tenya nodded in agreement. "We should finalize who shall be the cooks! Who is the best in our class?"

"Ah, let that rest upon muah!" Aoyama posed as he continued to smile. "Tsu, Uraraka and Shoji are certainly skilled in the kitchen, but there is one who stands among the great chefs in our friends!"

"Who?" Jiro asked.

Aoyama pointed to the group and winked. "Sir Bakugo of course!"

"Achoo!"

Bakugo sniffled as his nose suddenly felt itchy, rubbing his face before he heard a shout to his right. Glaring, he turned and saw a crook charging him with a knife, jumping out of the way and blasting him into the car beside him. "At least say bless you, ass hole!" he shouted in annoyance.

"Hey, you better not die on me, sparky!" Mirko yelled out from the side, kicking her leg out and knocking another villain out as she pinned two more beneath her other foot.

"Shut up, bunny! I just sneezed!" Bakugo barked out and blasted himself up in the air, spinning around and bringing his hands forward, unleashing a powerful explosion below and smashing the pair of goons beneath him into the road. "You act like that shit would take me out!"

"It better not." Mirko tapped her foot rapidly beneath her, the impact acting like a jackhammer to the two villains she stood on, knocking them out as their heads bounced like pin balls on the ground. Her large ears perked up to the tires screeching to the side, turning to see the last few diamond thieves trying to flee. Smirking, she leaped through the air instantly, landing in front of the fleeing car and bringing her right leg back. "If you're too tired I can let you go back to school and take a nap."

Mirko's leg smashed into the front of the car, launching it back down the road as the passengers screamed for dear life. Bakugo sneered and jumped to the side as the car crashed beside him. "I'm not tired, cottontail! I can handle anything you can do!"

"Yeah yeah, keep saying that," Mirko taunted, always getting a kick out of pushing his buttons. "Either way you should get your ass back to school today. Can't let your dumb ass fail a quiz and you get put in detention."

"I'm not failing shit!" Bakugo snapped out as he dragged the dizzy villain through the car window. Cracking the villain in the face with a punch, he dropped the man down and glared at the rabbit. "No damn test is going to keep me out of the field!"

"It better not, because that would be soooooo embarrassing." Mirko scoffed as she heard the wrecked car shift. She looked over to the final villain flop onto the ground, rolling her eyes and walking his way. "God, just give up already. I was hoping for a little challenge at least."

"Oh yeah? Then suck on this!" the man yelled out, his body beginning to shift into something… until his eyes nearly burst out of his head as Mirko's foot drove into his stomach and launched him high into the sky.

"Yeah, not interested." Mirko grumbled, somewhat annoyed that the last few gangs they fought weren't challenging at all. "Why do these idiots even bother trying sometimes?"

Bakugo stared up in the sky where the villain was sent, his eyebrow raising when he still didn't see him. "You gonna go catch him or what?"

"Yeah, I will…" Mirko nodded and looked up as well, tapping her foot as her ear twitched. "In a second."

…

…

…

…

Bakugo looked back and forth between the sky and the rabbit, waiting to see her actually go and catch him before he splat. But before he said anything, Mirko's ears twitched again and she let out a sigh, taking several steps as she got in position. The faint scream from the sky grew louder as the villain tumbled towards the road below, just as Mirko leaped into the sky and caught the man in her arms. As they landed, the once rough looking villain shivered like a baby, rocking back and forth and rubbing his arms. "Take me to jail, please…"

Rolling her eyes, Mirko dropped him on the ground and walked away, leaving Bakugo staring at her in both amazement and a hint of fear. "Jesus, this woman might just kill me if I piss her off…"

Back at UA

Grabbing the socket wrench off her desk, Kendo spun it in her fingers as she walked back to the motorcycle at the foot of her bed. Humming to herself, she smiled and tightened down the chain before reconnecting the gas line. She shifted on the paper laid beneath her, sighing as she had to be careful of getting any grease on the floor. "Maybe I can get a work shed built outside for this." She said to herself, grunting as she finished clamping the hose back on and testing the chain's tension.

"Almost there…" She whispered in excitement, ready to take this into the field. After her last few patrols, she was ready to not be left behind in the with this, she knew she could turn that around instantly.

She grabbed the allen wrench next to her and tightened down on the motor block. "Time to finally take this out and-

"Heyo!"

"GAH!" Kendo gasped as her bedroom door burst open, flipping around to see Mina grinning her way. "What the hell, Ashido?! You almost gave me a heart attack!"

Giggling, Mina skipped into the room and eyed what her new classmate was doing. "Ooh, looking good! Care if I take it for a spin sometime?"

Rolling her eyes, Kendo stood up and wiped her hands clean. "Have you ever ridden a motorcycle before?"

"Nope, but I can figure it out in a snap."

Scoffing, Kendo shook her head and grinned. "Yeah, but you aren't taking this girl out without practice. This is my special one I've been working on. Anyway, what's up that you couldn't knock?"

Giggling, Mina rubbed the back of her head. "Sorry, I was a bit excited. You're free tomorrow, right?"

"Uh, well I was going to hang out with Setsuna in the morning. Why, what's up?"

"Because we could use some help. Tomorrow night, we are setting up a sweet date here!"

"A date?" Kendo asked curiously.

"Uh, for the two lovely couples we have!" Mina announced happily. "Dinner with servers, a movie outside, and even a lovely dance afterward!"

"Really?" Kendo's eyes widened in surprise. "That… actually sounds like a pretty cool thing. Is everyone helping with this?"

"Pretty much so far, yeah. Well, except for the couples of course." Mina chuckled. "Let them relax and get ready for the special night!"

Laughing at her excitement, Kendo gave a small shrug. "Alright, I can help a bit if you need it. So Todoroki asked Katara out? And Midoriya?"

Mina now gave a small shrug. "I mean, Todoroki said Midoriya had asked about joining, so I think I asked Yaomomo."

Frowning, Kendo reached up and rubbed her head. "I know they are close, but I just feel like Midoriya would still pass out trying to ask her out."

Mina pursed her lips out and waved her hand. "Oh come on, he's not that bad anymore."

Twiddling his thumbs, Izuku exhaled loudly as he stood outside Momo's room. While he had asked Shoto if it was okay if he could take Momo on this planned dinner date as well… he still hadn't asked Momo about going on it. He wanted to last night, but everytime he thought about it, his heart rate spiked and he couldn't bring himself to ask her.

'Gosh, what kind of a boyfriend am I?' Izuku scolded himself internally. 'We are practically official and I can't even ask her to go out to a dinner?! What the hell?!'

He frowned when he felt sweat falling down his forehead, annoyed he was even feeling this way. Heck, he had already kissed her on multiple occasions! Why was this so hard for him to do?! Wiping his forehead dry, he took a deep breath and reached up, knocking on her door several times. "It's just a dinner… nothing special to it. Just us having a fun time. Yeah. Maybe a little dressed up and…"

Izuku's eyes widened as he suddenly imagined Momo in a beautiful dress, her makeup and hair done up to accentuate her already beautiful face. Immediately his panic rose once more, thinking how he was going to stay composed when she was going to look so pretty. Just then, he gasped as her door opened up, revealing the tall teen standing there with her hair down and wearing a tan crop top.

"Izuku?" she smiled seeing him. "Hey, how are you doing?"

"Good, I'm good!" He quickly answered, sweating as he tried clearing his mind of the gorgeous images so he could focus. "J-just, came to see how you were doing!"

"I'm doing fine. I was just going to head down to the bathroom to get cleaned up, and I was wondering if you wanted to grab some food later."

"Food. yeah, food it good!" Izuku forced chuckled, making Momo's eyebrow raise.

"Uh, are you alright? You look kind of pale." she said as she stepped out of her room.

"I'm f-fine! I just…" Izuku stopped talking and clenched his fists, frowning to himself at his stuttering. He knew what he wanted to ask, so damn it, he was going to ask. "Momo… I'm not sure if you heard, but Todoroki is going to take Katara on a date here. Everyone in class is going to help set up a whole experience for them since we can't just leave to go off campus for things like that."

"Really?" Momo asked in surprise. "That's a neat idea, actually! It's really sweet they can finally have a night like that."

"Yeah, it is…" Izuku swallowed as he rubbed the back of his head, looking up into her eyes and smiling. "And… I was hoping you would like to have dinner with me there as well."

Now Momo was the one to blush, her mouth opening up in shock to his request. She gave her own sheepish smile, one of her hands coming up and stroking her loose hair. "Are… are you asking me on an official date, Izuku?"

"Heh heh… maybe." He bashfully answered, controlling himself from going on one of his muttering rants again. "I just figured it was time we actually had a date together it's been so many weeks since we first kissed and grown closer it's a shame we haven't actually had one but with everything after Kamino it's easy to see why with the license test and already both at work studies it's really hard to just have a night together but now this is the chance we can get together like any couple should I hope this is something that we can-

"Izuku…" Momo giggled and patted his shoulder. "You're doing it again."

Damn it!

"Sorry," he chuckled, "It's just I think it would be nice for us to do something like this."

Feeling her cheeks warm, Momo gave a definitive nod. "I think so, too. I think that will be a wonderful idea."

Feeling his heart jump, Izuku smiled in glee and nodded back. "Alright! I'll find out what time everyone is thinking it will be ready so we can-

Izuku's words were silenced as her lips pressed against his, his eyes widening from the sudden action before she pulled away, leaving him stunned and speechless as giggled. "Sounds good, Izuku. I'll talk to you more about it later during dinner tonight." She winked and walked past him towards the bathrooms. Izuku stood there for a few moments before he exhaled, unable to keep the silly grin of his face.

"One for all, UA, and now Momo… How did I get so lucky?!"

The afternoon came extremely fast for the Endeavor Agency, most of the sidekicks having been busy handling the stacked up paperwork and whatever small crimes popped up around the city. For the lead sidekick Burnin, it was certainly an annoying task as she growled as she flipped through page after page, wishing she could've used one of the other newbies to handle this crap instead. For her unfortunately, a lot of the others were already out doing whatever tasks were required or had their own paperwork to deal with.

"The benefits of the job…" Burnin mumbled out, flipping through the next stack and writing as fast as she could to finish it up. Yawning out, she stretched her arms up over her head and felt her elbow pop, grunting before she leaned back in her chair. While the paperwork itself was bothering her, instead looking over to the elevator nearby. After Katara suddenly showed up the night before alone, she didn't even have the chance to ask what happened before she changed and left back towards her school. Not more than an hour had passed when Endeavor returned as well, walking in silence past her and traveled up to his office.

And he still hadn't come down.

It was obvious some shit went down between the two of them when they left, perhaps the girl telling Endeavor what had been bothering her. And judging by them returning separately, it was pretty obvious it didn't go too well for either of them. If she didn't know any better, it could be said this was the last time Katara would be joining them, but she wasn't going to find out anytime soon. After calling his phone, she grew frustrated when it continued to go straight to voicemail, now tempted to go up and figure out what the hell happened. But right then, the elevator doors opened up, revealing the man in question.

"Endeavor!" Burnin quickly stood up as he walked her way, seeing the small bags under his eyes. Now she realized he actually slept in his office. "Uh… You okay boss?"

The ragged looking hero frowned, reaching up and rubbing his eyes as he walked past his sidekick. "I'm going out. Make sure my schedule is cleared for tomorrow." he mumbled out, leaving Burnin's mouth hung open in confusion.

"You're going out? Uhh, you want a bite to eat?" She asked, knowing no one delivered anything to him today. When he didn't answer and headed to the door, she frowned and ran up to his side. "Sir? Is… are you good?"

Letting out a small sigh, Endeavor pushed the door open and headed toward the street. "I will be. Just keep my schedule cleared today."

As he exited the building, Burnin sat in surprise at the look on her boss's face, not remembering a time seeing him look so… confused. And then she frowned to herself and crossed her arms. "So do I clear today or tomorrow? And today is already over…"

Outside, Endeavor slowly walked down the sidewalk on his own, not even paying attention to where he was going or the people that walked by him. Even the occasional growl from his stomach didn't catch his attention, too lost in his thoughts as he stared blankly ahead. He couldn't think about something like that, for his mind was thinking too much about the conversation from the night prior. It had overtaken thoughts and kept the hero up pretty much the entire night, unable to push out what was said no matter what he tried thinking about.

Enji Todoroki felt his brow furrow as his mind went back to the conversation from last night, hearing the young waterbender scolding him for the lifelong goal he had been working for since he was young. No one else could understand the frustration he had felt growing up in the shadow of someone so much greater than himself. By the time he was only twenty years old, he had risen up to the rank of number two hero in the country. No matter what happened after that however, he was never able to close the gap between himself and All Might. Even as he grew older and stronger, no matter how many villains he brought down, he was never able to get anywhere near to the power that All Might possessed.

He huffed out at the teenager for judging him for attempting to follow his dreams, something anyone with the drive for it would follow. He was doing everything he could so that he could see himself get to the top, and that meant pushing himself and his family to reach that goal. As he tried telling himself that however… a sickening feeling rose up in his stomach at his reasoning.

Enji looked up from the street to the clouds above, thinking back to all of the steps in his life that he had made. His mind began replaying the words Katara shouted at him, especially the points focusing on his family. For some reason, he began seeing images of his wife and children, seeing them when they were all young and around him. He squeezed his fists in frustration, attempting to push those aside like he always used to do. But now… he couldn't. It was because before, he could simply focus everything he had on his ranking.

And that was the difference now. He had become the number one hero, something he had always wanted to be. It didn't feel genuine of course, since he had never been able to earn it over getting it through a technicality. The first month since becoming number one almost felt fake, even hearing many things going around that he wasn't the true number one. But that wasn't what was bothering him now, because now, Katara's words tormented his mind.

To become the number one hero, yes he had the title now. But when she asked what was any different than before… he didn't have an answer for that. He went from number two to one, and in all honesty, he didn't feel any different than before. It was as if nothing had changed for him, other than a simple title change for the pro hero. Was it the fact that he didn't earn it, or the fact it wasn't the change that he was expecting it to be? He couldn't explain, but it didn't feel like the insane amount of pleasure that he was going to receive getting here at last. Either way, now that he had made it, the fire in his heart had seemed to disappear since the goal had been achieved now.

But then he thought of Shoto, and the fact he was set to take the spot in the future. As he walked aimlessly, Enji began thinking of the resistance he received from Shoto over the years, his son refusing to train his flames whenever he pushed it. He had always just seen it as stubbornness, but now he just kept seeing images of his wife, back to the times when she was still at the house with them all. Images of his other children began flashing by, but the only one he could really remember completely clear was Shoto. The others… were just images pushed behind Shoto.

Endeavor stopped walking as he suddenly began feeling lost, unsure of this confused sensation flowing through his head. Clenching his fists, he glanced over and saw he was near the park where the argument had occurred the night before. The grassy area was filled with people unlike last night, many couples and families walking and playing with their children in the sun. Glaring at himself, he walked towards the park, many of the citizens staring up in surprise and awe at the number one hero walking by them. As he walked down the sidewalk, Enji suddenly felt something hit him in the side of his leg, looking down to see a young child had slammed into him while running.

"Oh my gosh!" a man ran up and picked his child up. "I'm so sorry! Please forgive him!"

"It's… It's fine." Enji quietly responded, his mouth hanging open in surprise as the man quickly bowed over and over. "It's not-

"Kid's just get distracted sometimes!" the father quickly said, "I hope it's nothing you hold against him!"

"It's nothing to worry about…" Enji answered once more, staring as the father quickly carried the child away. It seemed to the flame hero the man was actually… worried he was going to do something in response to the child simply bumping into him. He then looked around at the other people around the park, seeing most of them did admire him from a distance, but most kept their space from him unlike All Might or some of the other heroes. Before he never even cared when supporters tried to approach him, but now he actually saw they didn't see him in the same light as All Might, or any other hero.

Walking past the other people watching him, Enji reached the fountain in the center of the park, staring at the water splashing across the surface. The rippling water reminded him of the waterbending teen, his mind still reeling from the fact she apparently was dating his son. While part of him adamantly wanted to end it there, he also had a strange and sickening feeling why he never knew of it. He didn't think Shoto would even like someone like that, but then began thinking of his son more. He tried thinking of what Shoto liked, and literally couldn't come up with an answer.

He heard some giggles from the side, turning to see another young boy eating an ice cream with his parents. Enji dug into his mind and thought of what Shoto liked to eat, and couldn't even think of what his son's favorite food was. He thought of what he did for fun, and the only thing that came up was training him to use his dual quirk. His other children began pouring into his mind, his confusion growing even further. He knew his daughter Fuyumi was a teacher. But… he couldn't remember the subject she taught. His son Natsuo was currently in college… but he couldn't put down the name of where he was even going now. He simply wrote a check and sent it to his son and left it at that.

And then Touya…he quickly clenched his eyes shut and grabbed his forehead. He thought back to his first child, and how his flame quirk could've become stronger than his. Due to the inability for his body to handle it however, Endeavor chose to end the training for him, but he never attempted to help him in any other way, instead pushing all his focus towards Shoto when the time was right. After the accident in the mountains, he gave up attempting to teach the next two since they had none of his own quirk in them.

Walking backwards, Enji sat down onto the bench nearby as he felt his frustration growing. Everything that he had wanted to achieve since he was young had happened now. He had become the number one hero after all these years. He had pushed his family duties aside as he put everything into overtaking the spot held by All Might. And now, he had the spot he wanted, and now his family was nothing like the happy and cheerful groups that walked through the park around him. He remembered the look on his wifes face every time she stood in front of him to keep him away from Shoto and the others, a sickening feeling beginning to grow in his stomach as he remembered how he made her get out of the way.

And now… Katara's words stung his heart as bad as he had ever felt before, the question on repeat over and over.

"You cared about becoming number one so much, you sacrificed what was close to you. Now that you finally have it… Was it worth it?"

Enji crossed his fingers and clenched his hands together, bringing them up to his mouth as he stared blankly at the fountain before him. Minutes rolled by for the hero as he thought about those words, his mind searched for a response. It was the same thing he had been thinking of since he went to his office last night. And after all this time, he still couldn't think of an answer.

Near the base of Mount Fuji

Walking down the dirt path, Dabi took a deep breath as moved through the darkening evening, glancing over to the large man beside him. "We should be getting close now."

"We better be. I'm getting damn sick of walking." Muscular growled out, looking up to the rising moon. "So you dragged me all the way out to here for a hike? Where the hell are these guys you talked about?"

"They will be here…" Dabi grumbled, somewhat pissed himself he was being made to go all the way out here from the city. Now that he was meeting them again, he was told to follow the side paths away from the main hiking trail to the mountain, and someone would guide them the rest of the way. "These bastards are damn secretive, and they are a hell of a lot better at hiding than Shigaraki was."

"So what is this? A damn game of hide and seek?" Muscular spat out, rolling his neck and feeling it pop. "This better not be a waste of time, or I'll kill you right here and go on my way."

Gritting his teeth, Dabi spit on the ground at the threat. "Just shut up. Would you rather be just sitting with the others doing shit right now?"

Growling, Muscular stomped his feet harder as he trotted down the pathway. After several minutes, however, he suddenly heard a light hiss from the trees nearby. Instinctively, his arms became engulfed in his muscle fibers, ready to blow his way through the tree line before Dabi walked forward. "Calm down, you crazy fool. It's not some heroes sneaking up on us." He then turned back to the trees, frowning as he stepped closer. "Just get your ass out here already so we can stop looking around for you ass holes."

Snickering, Kobura slithered down from the tree branches onto the ground, flicking his tongue as he came into the faint light. "I thought I could just let you wander through the woods all night, see how long you go until you just pissed off."

"And why would you go and do that? Pretty rude to be avoiding your customer." Dabi taunted, making the snake man glare.

"Trust me, I would prefer to just keep away from this job. But the boss seems pretty interested, and that means following her orders." Kobura sighed out, glaring at the large man beside the flame user. "Who's this guy, your bodyguard?"

"Who the hell is this guy?" Muscular laughed seeing the snake man there, "Is this supposed to be one of those mercenaries you talked about? Looks more like a lost pet to me."

Baring his fangs, Kobura hissed out at the taunt, but closed his eyes and turned away. He didn't want to even deal with these league of villains members, but if Itkomi wanted to talk with them once more, he wasn't going to go against her orders. "Just shut up and follow me. She's waiting for you."

"So nice of you. Lead the way." Dabi snickered.

While muscular stared in doubt at the man slithering away, Dabi walked after him through the thick treeline. Frowning, Muscular followed him as well, pushing through the bushes and branches blocking the way. Now that they were off the trail, they saw how isolated they were getting, moving closer towards the mountain base itself. "What is this, another hike?" the large man growled out in annoyance.

"Just shut up." Kobura grumbled out, leading the pair under the darkening sky through another thick line of trees. "It wouldn't be a hidden base if it were easy to find."

Scoffing, Dabi pushed through the branches until he suddenly watched the snake man drop from sight, walking forward and seeing a small crevice hidden between two boulders. "Son of a bitch… they really are just hiding in the ground."

Muscular eyed the small ravine in doubt, not trusting this new guy he just met. "The hell is this? What kind of guys are these?"

Dabi sighed and looked into the dark hole below. "Some people who can get the job done." he said out loud as he jumped down, falling in the shadows as he slid down the tunnel. Several seconds went by in darkness, before the slope leveled out and he came to a stop. He could hear Muscular follow him down, unable to see anything until his right hand lifted up and ignited. The blue flames lit up the area around himself, his eyes widening as he realized they were now inside a massive underground cavern, the area so large he couldn't even see the walls from his created light. In the next instant, the cave lit up in bright lights making him cover his eyes. After adjusting for the lights, he looked up to see multiple spotlights lined along the roof beaming down at them.

And the many figures standing around them.

"Huh?" Muscular spun around as he stared at the eight figures who seemed to appear from nowhere, all of them some kind of animal quirk along with Kobura. "What the hell?! Is this a zoo you took me to?"

While some of the other members scoffed, one couldn't help but laugh. "Oh hahahaha! That's a good one!" Fisi cackled out at the comment.

"This is the guy you said he was bringing?" Muteki shook his head in amusement. "I thought he may have actually brought that Shigaraki fellow here."

"No, we got the muscled freak," Itkomi chuckled as she stepped forward, her long spider legs shifting with each step. "Not like he could come up with anything more clever than that."

"What was that?" Muscular grinned and walked forward, his arms expanding out as the muscle fibers enshrouded them once more. "I don't take kindly to insults."

"Shut it, you crazed bastard," Dabi warned him. "These aren't the guys to fight."

"And why not?" Muscular laughed and stomped forward, eyeing the large crocodile man glaring at him. "I don't like the way these guys are looking at me. And I've never liked animals to begin with."

"Aww, he doesn't like us?" Fisi giggled to himself. "I'm so sad…. Hmm hmm hmm!"

"Wow, so rude of you," Itkomi snickered, "Maybe someone should teach you some manners."

"Really?" Muscular licked his lips as he felt his blood rushing. "Then come and teach me then."

The leopard seal Kavik and Rogue bared their teeth and stepped forward, flexing their claws at his taunt. "Don't even think you can step in her direction without getting killed." Kavik warned him.

"God damn you…" Dabi growled in frustration, not expecting this to change so quickly.

"Why are we listening to this?" Sasori hissed out, "I told you this was a waste of time."

"I'm kind of interested in seeing this play out," Muteki chuckled and crossed his arms, leaning back against the rock wall. But before anything did happen between the figures, a wall of blue flames erupted out between the villains. The raptor user frowned and rubbed his claws along his forearms. "What a buzzkill…"

Swiping his hand free of the flames, Dabi hissed in annoyance at the situation. "Calm the fuck down, why don't you?" he snapped at Muscular, looking back to the hunters leader. "Apologies. Perhaps we can start over from the beginning."

Licking her lips, Itkomi rubbed her fingers together as she played with the webs formed between them. "Good. I was hoping I wouldn't need to clean this place up. And since you almost cost your business deal just now."

As the flames dissipated, Dabi sighed out. "Trust me. That is something I don't want to happen."

"I thought so…"She stated as she stepped forward, "All of this to get at Endeavor's kid and his little girlfriend. And that is where your little plan needs a change."

"Huh?" Dabi raised his eyebrow at that. "What do you mean?"

"Another of my people have been keeping an eye on the new number one hero, and they picked up something quite interesting…" Itkomi pointed a finger up as she smiled. "It seems Endeavor's kid failed the license exam, and he will not be out in the field like you thought was going to happen?"

"Huh? He failed" Dabi was certainly surprised. After All for One had been put away, the source they had inside UA had gone in complete silence, possibly believing they didn't owe anything to him now that he had been arrested. That meant the only information they could retrieve anymore was what physically came out anymore. 'Shoto failed? Little bastard isn't that perfect after all…'

"Shit…" Dabi muttered out loud, earning a nod from the leader.

"Yes, and don't even try and think we will break into UA for your little scheme. That place is a fortress ever since you fools made your move on it before, and it's dead center in the most hero populated area in Japan. It's a complete suicide mission if that were attempted." Itkomi explained.

Dabi sighed in disappointment at the news, hoping to somehow get both Shoto and Katara out in the open to bring them both in his grasp. Now that only the girl was going to be out, he was down one pawn in his fantasy he planned out. When Itkomi chuckled, he raised his eyebrow in confusion. "What's so funny?"

"You seem set on getting this done to get to Endeavor, and now you look ready to cry in disappointment." She snickered at the glare she received. "But my friend happened to hear the girl and Endeavor arguing last night… and apparently they are not close in any way. And there seems to be so much tension between the flame hero and his son. We can use that to our advantage."

Dabi did his best to hide the chuckle that wanted to escape his throat, rubbing his fingers together as his mind spun. 'Tension… That's an understatement.' He whispered internally. "Hmmm… it's a shame his kid won't be joining us, but that girl will still be useful."

"Of course… and that's the part where you will listen to us…" Itkomi grumbled, her gaze focused at the burnt villain. She could tell that Dabi's mind was spinning, her multiple eyes narrowing at the villain. "I'll be honest and tell you what's happening. I can tell there is something personal between you and Endeavor, and as a matter of fact, I don't care. As long as this works, you can do whatever the hell you want with the girl once this is done. I am sticking to your offer once this is done, where the money all comes to us."

Grinning, Dabi nodded, "Of course. I don't give a shit about the money. And neither does this bastard here. Just let him loose on some helpless fools and he will be happy.."

Itkomi smirked as she looked to Muscular standing there, cracking her knuckles at the man who stood almost eye level to her. "Oh don't worry. If that's what you want, there will be plenty of that to come. Especially with our plan we have."

While the one eyed villain grimaced at the villains, Muscular did like the idea of not just sitting still like Tomura wanted. If he was able to start killing people, he was always down with the idea.

"So tell me, how much do you think a child from UA would go for in a ransom?" Itkomi asked out, "One hundred million yen? Five hundred million? What about an actual hero?"

Now Dabi grew curious to her words, slipping his hands in his pockets. "A hero?"

Smiling, Itkomi nodded. "You think there is ever only one hero that comes to engage serious threats? There will always be weak stragglers that follow the strong, trying to feed off the leftover glory from the battle. But that's the thing, we will get Endeavor separated from where we are… while the others will be easy pickings for us to take. We will not only grab the kid, but we will be taking a number of other bargaining chips to use."

"And how do you plan to do that?" Dabi asked, only receiving a chuckle from the arachnid woman.

"You leave bait out for the wolf to come to you… and you lay the trap to ensare them without even having to be there. By doing that, you are free to take down the rest of the pack, one by one." Itkomi laughed out, already imagining the amount of money she would be seeing soon. "We will take hostages without having to even face Endeavor, and we will be gone before he can even come to help."

While he was confused, Dabi was certainly interested in seeing what she came up with. "Alright… I'm certainly interested now." He grinned.

While some of the hunters still had their doubts, most of them grinned to themselves after hearing what was planned by their leader. The amount of money that was promised was too good to be turned down, and couldn't wait to enact their plan. Muteki however wasn't excited for the money… he had plenty by now and wasn't in this position for that any more. No, he loved the thrill of it, and he simply wanted more. And he knew with what was going to happen, he was going to throw in his own twist to the plan on his own, since he knew it was necessary for who was going to be joining the heroes in facing them.

'She knows others will come to aid Endeavor, but she isn't expecting someone so strong will be coming.' He said internally as he stared at his boss, his mind going back to his time years ago. He remembered his friend as they last spoke to each other, her long white ears laying down on her head in anger as she swore to be the one to stop him. 'If there is any hero other than Endeavor Itkomi doesn't want to face, it's her.'

He couldn't help but hold back his laughter as he twitched his claws, grinning to himself as he began planning his own task at hand. 'Now this is getting really interesting.'

Notes: wow, some big things happening now! The date is coming next chapter, Endeavor having self doubt, and the hunters are preparing to make their move.

What kind of plan do they have in store? and We see Muteki preparing to meet an old friend of his. How is this going to go down?!

Special announcement: another new artpiece of this arc has been released to my deviantart! find the link on my profile!

Hope to see all your thoughts on this chapter. Till next time!