Author's Note: Hey everyone! Here is chapter 9! This one was fun to write, especially after the group's stuff is dealt with. You'll see that I tease the next arc at the very end. Speaking of the next arc, Arc 1 is complete. That being said, in order to stya ahead of my uploading schedule and keep the buffer of chapters that I have, I will be taking a two week break from uploading. I will be back, don't worry. I just need some time to pad some stuff out.
Also, if you want to get into a place with other lovers of MHA, and specifically IzuJirou stuff, come on and join this Discord server that I'm on:
/eFtmT8cTbY
We're only kind of crazy, and not at all a cult... except, we also kind of are. Anyway, yeah, join that!
I hope you enjoy this chapter! It's cross-posted on Ao3 as well. Leave a review if you want to. I welcome the feedback! See you next week.
"Do I have to?"
"Yes, you have to talk to your mother." Kyouka answered. After securing the villains and making sure that the medical supplies in the safe weren't broken, despite their incredibly limited knowledge of what any of it was, they began moving through to make sure that any of the remaining patients or workers were alright.
It had been ten minutes since then, and they were still trying to convince Izuku to go outside to talk to his mother.
"But… I don't want to hurt her like this… I mean, I lied to her about what was going on. That's going to break her heart."
"Fine." Kyouka said.
"Fine?" Izuku asked, his head cocked.
"Fine." She said with a smile. "If you don't want to tell her, then I will." She leaned right next to Izuku's face and whispered. "And then I'll tell her how we're together now. And that you didn't want to tell her either of these things."
Izuku's eyes widened, even though nobody could see him. "H-Hey now, you don't have to d-do that. We're all friends here, right?"
"If you talk to Inko." Kyouka said.
"That's cold…" Mei said.
"Okay, okay… I'll do it." Izuku acquiesced. He sighed.
"Good. Then follow me." Kyouka said, leading the four of them out the emergency entrance that she had left Inko outside. Inko was sitting on the curb where she had been left before. The other nurse that was there before Kyouka left was still unconscious, resting up against the building.
Upon hearing footsteps behind her, Inko quickly got up and looked to the approaching group of teenagers. "You made it out of there, then."
"Yes we did, miss Inko." Kyouka said. She removed her mask and took her headphones off.
"Seeing as there are five of you, I think I can take a guess as to who you are…" Inko looked at the group, but her eyes stopped at Izuku. "Please…" Her voice was soft. "Please tell me why you are like... this…" She gestures to Izuku.
Izuku sighed and stepped forward. He reached up to take his mask off, but as soon as his hands made contact with it, he hesitated. Kyouka stepped forward and put her hand on Izuku's shoulder. He sighed and took off his mask.
Inko's eyes immediately began to tear up upon seeing Izuku. "I… Izuku… What are you doing here?"
"I… I think you should come with us, mom. There's a lot to explain." Izuku said. He put his mask back on and turned to the others. "How long did you set the Egg for?"
"Five minutes!" Mei said.
"Good, then we're good to go. Let's head back to the van. Once we drive off, we can call the police, but we have to make sure that we're away from the scene. Move out." Izuku said. The other four nodded and started moving towards their van. Kyouka assisted Inko in getting to the van as well.
Mei got in the driver's seat and started the van, backing out of the small alleyway that they had pulled into and making their way down the road.
Shortly into their trip, Hitoshi fiddled with his mask. He took out his phone and dialed the police. In a high pitched woman's voice, he spoke. "Help! There are people attacking the hospital! The First Regional Hospital in Musutafu! Please help!" And then he hung up. Taking off the mask, he turned to the rest of them. "It's done. We should be fine now."
"Okay, mom, I-"
"Izuku, are you criminals?" Inko interrupted.
"I… I guess so." Izuku admitted.
"But why?" Inko asked.
"I didn't get into UA, mom." Izuku said. "They said I was too reckless. My quirk overloaded my head at the end of the exam, and I passed out. I didn't get enough points to pass. The rest of them did." Izuku gestured to the rest of the people in his group.
"And so you got them to leave UA for you?" Inko asked.
"Miss Inko, it was our idea. Well, mine, mostly." Mei admitted from the front seat. "Izuku was hard to convince to go along with this, honestly."
"And yet, here you are."
"What other choice did I have, mom?" Izuku questioned. He could feel the tension in the air.
"You could have tried a different hero school! Or gone into the general studies at UA."
"If I couldn't get into UA, I don't think there would have been much of a chance at any others. And the general studies… I would have never gotten into the hero course from there." Izuku explained. He couldn't bring himself to look her in the eyes.
A few moments of silence passed. They could hear the faint whimper of crying. "I just… why a criminal? Didn't you want to save people?"
"I never stopped. I still want to. That's why I'm doing this. I'm helping people whether the Hero Commision likes it or not. Even if I'm not a hero in name, I'll be a hero in action." Izuku finally looked his mom in the eyes. With her eyes red and puffy, she had started the family skill of crying.
"Izuku… You've already changed so much. You're not stuttering. You have more confidence. And here you are, doing what you love with your friends… I'm just glad you're safe. I missed you… I missed you so much..." Inko's crying had escalated from Phase one straight into phase four: full waterfall. Seeing his mother crying in such a way, Izuku couldn't help but start crying himself.
"I missed you too, mom." Izuku hugged his mom as she convulsed slightly. The group sat in relative silence through the rest of the trip as the two hugged and cried.
A few hours later, the van pulled up to their little warehouse in SangenJaya.
"Well, here we are, mom." Izuku said. "We'll give you the grand tour." As the bay door opened, Izuku stepped inside. "Here's the main room. We have an oven, a refrigerator, a sink, and a dining table. Over there is Mei's workstation." Izuku gestured to the many monitors and the desk in the corner. "And this way," he turned and pointed at the hallway. "This is where we sleep. We each have a room and beds. That's pretty much it."
"To think. It's been just a few days, and you've managed to accomplish all of this. As weird as it feels for me to say this when I just realized that you're working as vigilante criminals, I'm proud of you, Izuku." Inko said with a smile on her face. Not a second later, though, her smile was replaced by a yawn. It was late, and she had just worked a nine hour shift followed by being a hostage, crying her eyes out, and then a multiple hour long car ride from Musutafu to SangenJaya. "I have several questions, and this discussion is not over yet, but I think we all need to sleep. Where can I sleep tonight, if that's an option?" Inko asked, looking around.
"You can sleep in my bed, Miss Inko. I can sleep in one of the chairs." Kyouka said, smiling.
"Are you sure, Kyouka? I wouldn't want to impose."
"Not at all, Miss Inko. I insist." Kyouka said with a smile.
"Alright, well, if you say so. Would you mind leading me there?"
"Of course, just follow me."
"Goodnight, everyone. It was good to see you all again." Inko said before following Kyouka back to the room.
"I believe that I will be turning in for the night as well." Fumikage said.
"Yeah, I think we should all hit the hay." Shinsou agreed. "Night guys, good work today. And thanks for the help with Riot. Sorry I couldn't help that much."
"I'm gonna head to bed, too, Izuku. Good job leading us, tonight." Mei patted his back and walked to her own room. Now alone, Izuku walked to his own room. After changing into some simple basketball shorts, he laid down on his bed and instantly felt his tension fade. It was comfortable. Damn, it was comfortable.
Right as Izuku felt that he was about to drift off into sleep, he heard some subtle movement at the edge of his room. Turning his head, he could see Kyouka in the faint light of the warehouse entering through the curtain door to his room. She, like him, had changed out of her vigilante outfit, and was now in one of her Deep Dope tank tops and some short shorts. He had to look away after a few seconds of looking so as to not come across as staring.
"Kyo… what are you doing here?" Izuku whispered as he sat up in his bed.
"Wow, good to see you too." Kyouka whispered back. "I'm here for you, dumbass." She moved towards the bed silently, gliding over the floor gracefully.
"Me? Why would you be here for me?" He asked as she approached
"Right, as if a girl wouldn't want to spend time with her boyfriend." Kyouka rolled her eyes before sitting down on the bed next to Izuku. "I know that I said I'd sleep in a chair tonight, but they're REALLY uncomfortable." Kyouka laughed. "So I was wondering if I could sleep in here with you tonight?"
Izuku could feel his face heat up. "A-are you sure, Kyo?" Kyouka nodded with a shy smile. "A-alright, well then… um… I'll sleep on the floor." Izuku said.
Kyouka put her hand against his chest, stopping him. "If I wanted to sleep on the bed, I would have said so. I said I wanted to sleep in here with you." She poked his chest for emphasis.
F-fine, I'll… s-scoot over." He moved so that his back hit the wall, clearing plenty of space on his bed. Kyouka slipped beneath his green blanket and laid her head down on the pillow. Izuku was still against the wall. He seemed to be almost frozen in that spot. He stayed that way for almost a minute before Kyouka spoke.
"Hey green bean, you gonna lay down?" The sudden sound startled Izuku. With a shy nod, he slowly lowered himself to prone next to her. Kyouka immediately wrapped her arms around him. "See? Isn't this nice?" Izuku nodded without saying anything. Kyouka laughed quietly. Her laugh was beautiful to Izuku. It rang like bells through his mind, even with it being less audible than normal. He couldn't say anything. She was frying his mind with each little movement, each little breath, each little sound, that she made. "What happened to the confident young man that pulled me closer once I sat on his lap in the cafe?" Kyouka asked with a sly smirk.
"You kissed me…" Izuku admitted. "Once that happened, I was back to being Izuku. Not Snake Eyes, but me. Snake Eyes is someone that fights. Not someone who has a girlfriend and goes on dates."
"You're the same person, dummy." Kyouka said. "But it's nice seeing this vulnerable you again. Not that I don't like confident you, either. I like both of them. And both of them are you."
"Why?" Izuku asked.
"Why? Why what?"
"Why do you… like me? There are other guys out there with more than me. I'm not the best looking, my quirk isn't as powerful as someone like Kacchan's. I'm still not sure why you chose to not go to UA for me."
Kyouka looked shocked. "Izuku, where the hell is this coming from?"
"N-nevermind." Izuku whispered.
"Izuku, look at me." He did as he was told. "I don't give a shit about your quirk. Or UA. And don't you lie to me about not being good looking."
"But I'm-"
"No, let me finish." Kyouka interrupted, silencing him by placing one of her jacks on his lips. "You're smart, a great fighter, and the most caring person I've ever met. You asked why I like you. Well, why wouldn't I?" Before he could answer, she leaned in and briefly kissed him, shutting his mind down. His whole body went stiff. Clearly, he wasn't used to this yet. But it was still endearing to Kyouka. She giggled and turned around, sliding backwards so that her back met Izuku's frame.
"K-K-K-Kyo?" Izuku stuttered out.
"I'm gonna be the little spoon. Just relax." She said with a smile. "He's warm. This feels nice." She thought as she felt herself drifting off into sleep.
Izuku, on the other hand, had a hard time taking her advice. The girl that he had liked for years was now his girlfriend as of yesterday, and was now cuddled into him on his bed. Eventually, the nerves died down once he realized that Kyouka had fallen asleep. Not wanting to wake her with his freakout was the real factor for calming down. Once he was finally able to relax, he couldn't help but immediately sink deeper into relaxation. She was warm. It made him more tired just being in that contact with her. Sighing, he pulled the cover over the two of them and embraced the girl. The last thing that he remembered before falling asleep was the smell of her hair. Something that he had smelled before, but in the past, it wasn't this close… or this personal.
"Lavender…" Izuku sighed to himself before finally falling asleep with a smile.
"You have another report for us, Aizawa?" Nezu asked.
"Yes sir." Shouta stood before the room of UA teachers once again. "A few days ago, I was in front of all of you reporting on how an op of mine in Yokohama was taken out before I could get there. Something that completely wasn't my fault, by the way."
"Yes, I recall." All Might said, still in his muscle form.
"Last night, there was an invasion and attempted robbery of the First Regional Hospital in Musutafu. I say attempted because they were stopped. On scene, the police took several photographs. In two specific rooms, these were found." Shouta produced images that, like last time, had the paint splatter as well as 'Societas Requiem' emblazoned on the walls of the two rooms.
"The same group as last time?" Snipe asked.
"It would seem that is the case. This group, 'Societas Requiem', has now acted twice within the space of a few days in two different cities. And what's more is that they've done well." Shouta explained.
"They've taken down two groups of villains. Well, three, technically, since their first encounter was between two different groups. I'm not sure how 'well' the group is doing. Yes, the fact that three groups are now behind bars is good, but let's be honest here, these groups would be behind bars anyway." Vlad said.
"That's the thing. The first two would be there, yes. But this last group? The police have been going after them for a while now. But they've never gotten them. The leader's name? Yami Zenkaku."
"Blackout? They defeated her and her crew?" Kayama reeled back in surprise.
"Yes, they took down Blackout. Any police forces that have tried to go out there to get them have always come back unsuccessfully. But these people, this group, have fought, and won, mind you. On their first try." Shouta narrowed his eyes. "These people are dangerous, and I believe that we seriously need to start working on finding them. They're beyond what we can tolerate." He turned to look at Nezu. "Principal Nezu, I would like your permission to get this operation underway."
"Aizawa, you're a pro hero. You don't need my permission to go after villains or vigilantes."
"But I need your permission in order to request resources and team ups with other teachers."
"Find them first, and then we'll talk. If you bring me information about an encounter with them in person and you DON'T manage to take them down by yourself, then you may request help from other teachers here. Until then, you will have what little resources we have on them. That's not much, just your encounters with their aftermath and the police reports." Nezu explained, sipping a cup of tea.
"Nothing other than that…?" Aizawa asked, exasperated. "Isn't there anything else you could get me? You said they were most likely students that didn't pass the Entrance Exam, correct? Could I look through all of the applications?"
"I also said that all of the files relating to students were deleted from our servers last meeting, in case you forgot. Which further proves my theory that they are rejects of the UA Hero Course. Which means that they should be no problem for a pro hero such as yourself. Is this the end of your report, Aizawa?" Nezu asked.
"Yes sir…" Aizawa responded quietly. It came off as more of a growl than he would have wanted, but he was pissed. "Excuse me. I must get to class." Aizawa stood up and left the room. He walked to his classroom while rubbing his temples. That meeting was mentally exhausting, and his day had just begun. He still had the kids that he was teaching to deal with. He sighed. At least he had less students this year than he could have had. He'd expelled three students this year on the first day.
He walked into the classroom silently and slipped into his sleeping bag. He stood behind his podium. Slowly, the seventeen students in his class finished talking and looked his way.
"It took you twenty seconds to quiet down." He sighed. "I wonder if I should have expelled more of you… Regardless, today, I will be talking to you about something important: Vigilantes." Several hands immediately shot into the air. "Yes, Yaoyorozu." Azawa called on one of his students: Momo Yaoyorozu, a female with long onyx hair and one of the most versatile quirks that Aizawa had ever seen. And also a recommendation student, to boot.
"Aizawa-sensei, why are we going to be talking about vigilantes? Shouldn't our main priority be on villains?" Momo asked.
"Yes, fighting and dealing with villains is an important aspect of being a hero, but vigilantes can be just as dangerous, if not more so than villains in the hero line of work." Aizawa responded. "Who knows what a vigilante is?" He addressed the class.
Four hands went up. Aizawa sighed. "Not even a quarter of the class…" He thought to himself. "Iida. Do you have an answer for me?"
Tenya Iida, the younger brother of the pro hero, Ingenium. A stickler for rules, but intelligent. Some would say robotic. Aizawa would consider himself part of that "some". But the boy had a strong drive to be a hero.
"Yes, sensei. Vigilantes are people in society who act as heroes when they do not possess the necessary right to do so granted by the Hero Public Safety Commission." Iida answered quickly.
"That's partially correct. Can anyone tell me what he is missing?" The room remained silent. "Nobody, huh? Well, Iida, what you said was mostly correct. What he was missing, however, was the sad truth that vigilantism is a type of villainy. They are villains first and foremost. Do not forget that." Aizawa took off his sleeping bag, as comfortable as it was. It was lesson time now. He had them interested, if their expressions were any indication. Shock, confusion, curiosity. And then there was Bakugou, whose constant scowl never went away unless he was fighting something. "That might be a problem for later." Aizawa thought to himself, but he pushed that aside. "That distinction that people make between 'vigilante' and 'villain' without realizing that vigilantes are villains is part of what makes them so dangerous. Any ideas why?"
A single hand raised. Shouto Todoroki, one of the most powerful kids in his class this year. Mostly white hair with a single, small section of red. A similar color of red to the scar that adorned the left side of his face. Aizawa nodded to the kid, giving him permission.
"Because it humanizes them, Aizawa-sensei." He said.
"Would you care to elaborate on that?"
"The fact that they are still doing work that heroes would do changes both public opinion as well as the opinion of the heroes that try to stop them."
"Precisely. Many heroes, during their first interaction with vigilantes, will hesitate to fight them at their full potential or when bringing them in. The two were doing the same thing, right? Helping the public by their heroics. That is what they tend to think. But they are still breaking the law. Which leads to another problem: public opinion. The public oftentimes has a much more favorable view of vigilantes than typical villains, usually for the same reason. They're seen as more human. When someone is punished for 'doing good', the public can react harshly. That being said, while they are dangerous in terms of idealism, they are usually less skilled in combat than most heroes are. So if you run into a vigilante in your tenure as heroes, remember that they are no different than villains and must be taken in at all costs." Aizawa finished.
Another hand raised. Once again, it was Momo.
"Yes, Yaoyorozu?"
"Why are you telling us all of this now? I feel like it's a bit early into our time here to be speaking of things like that."
Aizawa sighed. "Alright. I'm not sure if I'm allowed to tell you this, but Nezu didn't say that I wasn't allowed to tell you this. There has been a vigilante group that has surfaced recently. They took out a notorious villain last night, one that both the police and some heroes have been struggling to apprehend for a while now. It's nothing to be worried about yet, but since it was on my mind, I felt like it should be brought up. That being said, if any of you run into a group that calls itself 'Societas Requiem', be wary. They've shown themselves to be capable. That is all." He finished.
Low murmurs spread throughout the classroom. Aizawa heard several different opinions throughout the murmurs.
"That's such a cool name…"
"They sound strong, kero."
"Societas Requiem… the dying song of society. That's ominous…"
"I'm sure you all have opinions on this, but as I said before, they aren't anything to worry about yet. Now, I believe that Present Mic will be here for English next. I will see all of you for Heroics later this afternoon. We will be training for the Sports Festival starting today." And with that, Aizawa walked out of class. He had research to do and a few hours to kill.
Normally, he'd spend this time napping, but he felt a compulsion to find out what these people were up to. They had to have a game plan. And he would find it. Whatever it took, he would.
The sun slowly crested over the horizon in west Japan. An explosion of vibrant colors filled the sky, replacing the cool darkness of night. A single man sat on a rooftop and watched the sunrise, a wide smile on his face. He had just finished work for the night and was taking a break to enjoy the scenery around him. As he watched, the streets began to fill up with people on their way to work or to school.
"They'll find it soon. I should move." The man said to himself. He sheathed one of his many knives in his calf holster. "I've arrived, Hosu. Prepare for the fakes to be eradicated." With that, he jumped off of the rooftop into an alley and seemed to vanish as a bloodcurdling scream pierced through the otherwise normal morning.
