08/01/2022
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The Emperor's Dragon
Fledgling 36
Sir Nighteye looked around at the slaughter. He was standing near the middle of an abandoned warehouse and there were bodies everywhere. All of them had been killed violently. They'd died fighting but it didn't seem as if any of the opposition remained. Except… his eyes narrowed. With the way the bodies had fallen, it didn't appear as if any of their opposition had fallen with them. There was very little disturbance to the bodies which would indicate that they had been shifted for the victors to take their dead and injured.
Plus the merchandise hadn't been touched. Until now.
Paramedics were stretchering the last of those still alive, thankfully most of them, out of the building now. Most of them were babbling something about how 'Dragon did this' or 'Dragon ordered this'. They seemed desperate to get that message across. The paramedics didn't care. It wasn't their job to care about that. He'd heard and shook his head. There was no Dragon in the underworld. Those kids were going to need extensive attention, both physically and mentally. That was always expected with a child smuggling ring.
But it did lead to several questions.
Those running the ring were dead. The Dorei ring had been dead for a few days before the smell had attracted attention. The merchandise, scared, dishevelled children had survived because this batch of kidnappers didn't stint them on water.
But why were the Dorei ring dead? And why hadn't the killers then taken the merchandise and sold them? Or at the very least, released them? A vigilante would have released the kids.
Whoever had done this seemed more interested in killing the kidnappers and then… they just left?
That wasn't right. It was too odd. Though… if he supposed that someone named Dragon had done this or had ordered it, then the oddity would make them stand out.
He sighed. It meant there were forces moving in the underworld.
The sidekick shook his head and then began picking his way out of the mess again.
Half way through he paused. Eyes narrowed as he examined the ground. Blood was liberally splashed there but was dry now. However there was… Sir Nighteye looked closely. There. There was a colour. Brilliant green.
He took precise steps towards the tiny flash of colour, deliberately controlling the concern he felt. Carefully he squatted and looked at the colour.
He shook his head. It was what he thought it was.
A scale.
Iridescent green. "Evidence!" Mirai yelled. The group rushed back into the warehouse and stopped, staring at where he was. He rose and pointed. "Just here," he said.
"What is it?" One of the collectors asked, eyes roaming over the blood splotches on the ground as if determining a pathway.
"Something that shouldn't be here," he said.
The man nodded and then picked his way over. Sir Nighteye was glad to see he had an evidence bag, tweezers and a camera all on hand.
The scale was quickly extracted and bagged.
Mirai looked at it, holding it up to the light. It looked the same as the others he had seen but what did it mean?
On one level, he knew what it meant. This was connected to All For One. Dragon was connected to All For One.
But whether it was the man himself, or one of his minions, he had no idea. He'd have to ask one of the kids, after they were treated and hope they had more information. He hoped they did. If they had anything that would help determine if this was All For One or one of his minions, then that would be immensely helpful. At the moment it just seemed like him and Mirai didn't want to think about what that could mean. The man had lost his head! The first responders who had gotten to Toshinori were adamant on that. So how…
Or maybe he was still injured, but well enough to give directions… Or maybe someone, this Dragon, was just good at imitating him. That would be the best outcome. Sir Nighteye doubted anyone would truly be able to match All For One. If it was someone imitating the former Emperor of the Underworld, then they would make a mistake, and that mistake would probably come sooner rather than later and that would be the end of that.
But… there was always the possibility that it was him.
There were too many questions. There were too few answers. And he hated returning to that reality again.
-ted-
All For One didn't comment as someone scurried behind him. He did, however, ready a couple of quirks. The Doctor had assured him he'd be able to use them without too much strain. His mask was feeding him oxygen and it was functioning well. Kyudai had injected him with a new cocktail of drugs before he'd left.
He had to admit he did feel fine, which was an improvement over the last lot of drugs but he didn't like that he was on a time limit. Eventually, the drugs would wear off and he would be back to being weak. He didn't want to think what he would be like without Regeneration and he refused to think too much on what the future held, assuming Izuku's friend's shape shifting quirk was a success. He hoped it would be fine but he was not counting on it.
A man dressed in a suit stood before him. He was one of the people All For One had come to see.
"We are able to distribute more," he was saying.
Underneath his mask All For One smiled. "I'm sure you can," he agreed, "but you have not supplied the requisite information," he added. "For every dose, Goto, you were to record certain events," he reminded the man. "If you cannot-" At that, All For One waved one hand expressively. It told Goto without words that he could always find another distributor. The man knew it as well.
"Sometimes there's hardly any reaction."
All For One resisted the urge to sigh. Did Goto understand nothing? When developing a drug, you wanted to know when nothing happened! You had to figure out what made those people different from others. "That is why the information is req-" he didn't get to finish the sentence. There was a crash from the side.
He didn't turn, though he could see Goto trying to work out what was happening. The crashing continued and All For One brought up more quirks. He suspected he knew what it meant.
A Hero had found Goto's warehouse. All For One took a deep breath. He could call Kurogiri but this would be a good test for him. Last time he'd used several quirks in Mie to destroy the building, he had been exhausted afterwards. He could not afford to continue to have such weakness. He took a few steps backwards so that he was at the back of the room.
"A friend of yours Goto?" All For One asked sardonically. Perhaps it was time to find a new distribution group, regardless of what Goto promised.
"Not one of mine. I'll get him."
Hisashi remained silent at that. The man correctly read it as doubt and yelled something into a phone. While All For One did have enhanced hearing, he was thankful he had mastered that quirk long ago. He could distinguish the sounds coming from the Hero and those coming from the room. The Hero was still working his way through the warehouse. The noise the hero was making suggested they were male. All For One ran through the list of Heroes who were in the area… No one really stood out.
It wasn't All Might, though he was expecting the detestable Number One to be on the hunt again.
"Goto!" That was a yell from the Hero. Even with the voice All For One didn't recognise them.
He would deal with him though. Goto seemed to freeze and All For One simply stood at the back of the room as the dealer tried to think what to do. He sighed. Yes, it was time to break ties with Goto. It was no wonder his underlings couldn't collect simple information if this was the leadership they were getting.
He heard the Hero running down the corridor. The pattern was fast, too fast for normal. This hero had some sort of speed quirk. This could be interesting. He burst through the door, clipping Goto as he rushed into the room. The dealer spun as he fell and All For One sighed. Definitely time to change distributors.
He watched as the Hero looked around the room. "Who are you?" came the demand.
Beneath his mask All For One smiled. "No one important," he said, a hint of laughter colouring his tone.
The Hero was instantly on guard. With his vision, All For One could see that he had a medium to heavy build and his costume was form fitting. Sensible. The hero paused, and that was his mistake.
All For One didn't hesitate. He activated the quirks he had brought to the fore. Strength, a slight gigantification quirk along with steel reinforcing. The hero might have had a speed quirk but obviously hadn't been expecting his reply or his actions. He grasped the hero's head, activating All For One and dragging the quirk to him.
The hero gave a startled cry as All For One squeezed before he went silent. The smell of blood filled the room and Hisashi knew that some of the steel reinforcing had cut the hero's skin. He let the man drop and pulled back his hand. While he couldn't see it exactly he flexed his fingers, feeling the new quirk. He'd experiment with it later.
With his other hand, All For One pulled out his phone and tapped the keys from memory.
"Sensei?" Kurogiri answered him immediately.
Another tap at the phone sent the Warp Gate his co-ordinates. Kurogiri knew what that meant. "We will need a new distribution organisation," Hisashi said conversationally as the misty man appeared next to him. The gate remained open and All For One stepped through.
"Do you have a preference?" Kurogiri asked as he reformed.
"Someone who can obey instructions," All For One replied.
"I'll make some inquiries," the misty man promised. It wasn't like it was difficult to find those willing to distribute Sensei's drugs. There were always those willing to use them and thus, where there was demand, there was supply.
He nodded and sensed the misty man leaving. All For One lifted his hand again, looking down on it as he flexed his fingers. Exhaustion hadn't hit him from the use of the quirks. That was better than last time but that was because he could still feel the drugs pumping through his system. He took several deep breaths.
He was fine for now but he knew that would change when the drugs wore off. He lifted one hand, tapping his mask. The drugs needed to be incorporated into it. That would give him a longer active time and the opportunity to extend that time if needed.
All For One nodded to himself. He'd ask the Doctor to incorporate that immediately. And for now… well, he had a new quirk to experiment with.
-ted-
"You've got a guest," Constable Junsa told Tsukauchi as he came into the station.
"A guest?" the Detective asked.
"She's at your desk," came the response with a waved hand that told him that whoever it was, wasn't a threat.
He nodded, before taking a sip from his coffee as he let himself through the barrier into the station proper. Naomasa immediately looked to his desk and was surprised to see who was there. "Mrs Midoriya," he greeted the woman.
She was sitting at his desk. He usually saw her at her house, and so the difference was startling. Her hair was tied back and she was wearing a suit.
"Detective," she greeted him with a smile but didn't rise.
A folder rested on the desk in front of her. It wasn't one of his. "You've brought something?" He asked.
Inko didn't reply as he took his seat. She just looked at him and Tsukauchi felt dread rise within him. It was never good when someone just sat quietly.
"When were you going to tell me?" she asked quietly.
"Tell you what?" Naomasa asked.
The look she gave him spoke volumes. He genuinely had no idea what she was talking about but somehow he felt stupid.
"Thank you for finding my husband."
Tsukauchi blinked. "But I haven't-"
Mrs Midoriya held up one hand to prevent him completing that sentence. She then reached out to the folder and opened it. She pulled a report and handed it to him.
Naomasa looked down at it and as soon as he saw the letter head he grimaced. It was a copy of a report from the Hero Public Safety Commission. Specifically it was a report about All Might's battle with Toxic Chainsaw.
"Page 10. I've highlighted the line," Inko said softly.
The Detective was hard pressed not to wince. He knew that tone. His Captain used it when he was pissed.
Tsukauchi braced himself for what he would find. He opened the report and looked down to the page. There, clearly labelled was a list of missing persons from the battle, with images. Hisashi Riji's gold eyes looked at him. He was hard pressed not to gulp.
"I realise in the past police departments didn't speak to each other," Inko was continuing.
That was a jab at them. Police Department databases had been integrated for centuries.
"But I had hoped that they were actively involved with the Hero Public Safety Commission, especially on large jobs."
She didn't say anything more. Naomasa recognised the tactic. By not asking a specific question, Mrs Midoriya was leaving it up to him to determine what and how to answer. It was a fishing technique. She already knew she had him dead to rights on the one thing, she was seeing what else he might not have told her.
Tsukauchi sighed heavily, putting the report down on his desk. He could hear Sir Nighteye screaming at him not to say anything but the sidekick didn't have to deal with the fall out. He took another deep breath and looked over at Mrs Midoriya. He met her eyes.
"I was in Tsu for that operation," he told her. "I was going after Izuku," he admitted.
She said nothing but the Detective could see how Inko was trembling.
"We went to his school, we went to every address they could give us but-" Tsukauchi shook his head gently. It said everything he needed to.
Mrs Midoriya's eyes wavered and he saw her gulp. "When were you going to tell me?" Even fighting back tears, her question was fierce.
"I didn't want to tell you," he said honestly, though mentally he was amending the sentence to Sir Nighteye didn't want to tell you. "Because nothing came of it, and I didn't want to bring up old wounds." It was a weak sentence.
Tears cleared instantly and Naomasa knew he'd made a mistake.
"Not being told opens up old wounds," she hissed at him. "Having you search, even if you didn't find him, shows that you still care."
A couple of the officers around them looked over at them but Tsukauchi waved them away. They recognised the tone of the woman.
"I'm sorry," he apologised. He hoped Mrs Midoriya would accept the words but she remained glaring at him.
"And you have no idea where Izuku is now, even if his father is missing?"
"I stayed for another two weeks down there," he explained. "But there were no leads."
"So who has my son?" Inko demanded. "And who is my husband, really?"
Tsukauchi couldn't help the way he jerked back at that question. The second one wasn't something she should be asking.
"I do not know who has your son," he replied honestly. He really wished he did because that would tell them something about the underworld after that battle.
"And my husband?" Inko pressed.
Naomasa sighed. He needed coffee, a cigarette, a distraction, anything to avoid answering that question. That was one aspect of the case he agreed with Sir Nighteye about. There was no need to tell Inko who her husband was. "Hisashi Riji is unfortunately still missing."
"Was he even there? A man of his importance does not just disappear," Inko told him.
She was not referring to Hisashi Midoriya, her husband, she was referring to Hisashi Riji, the owner of JBQC. People of those means did not just go missing.
"I am not on the case of Hisashi Riji," Naomasa was able to say honestly.
The look Inko directed at him was frosty.
She stood up, and put her hand out. Tsukauchi handed back the report. "Detective, you once promised you would keep me apprised of everything regarding Izuku's kidnapping," Inko said sweetly.
Naomasa wasn't drawn in. No woman ever spoke that sweetly unless she was delivering an ultimatum.
"I expect you to keep me apprised of the search for Hisashi Riji," she continued, the look she was giving him was challenging.
Tsukauchi knew better than to take it up. Inko Midoriya had the proverbial high ground. A word here, a whisper there, and her case would go public and then… So long as it focused on Police incompetence that would be okay but he knew, once the media realised Hisashi Riji was supposedly missing, someone would go digging and that could be a disaster for them all. Not just for him but for the Hero Public Safety Commission and their cover story.
Why hadn't someone already spoken to Inko? Or was he meant to have her covered? This is why he hated cover ups.
"I will make inquiries," he promised. He would too. He had too if everything was to remain covered and maybe… Mentally, he shook his head. Maybe it would be best to tell Inko the truth. Or at least a version of the truth that would encourage her to keep quiet. Surely she would understand the importance?
Except that wasn't a decision he could make alone.
And… Inko brought up several valid points. There should be something on Hisashi Riji and if there wasn't, then there needed to be, for the stability of everything.
Inko examined him for a few more moments before she nodded and turned away.
Naomasa collapsed back into his chair, closing his eyes as he took several deep breaths. He was invested in Izuku's case. Even now, he wanted to find him but…
His investment was nothing compared to a mother. Especially a mother who worked for Missing Persons… He groaned internally. He had a lot of calls to make.
-ted-
So this is a bit of a joining chapter but it is important. Obviously AFO is still establishing Dragon's credentials in the underworld and they are getting there. A massacre like this will definitely say 'don't cross me'.
AFO is getting better but is still weakened by normal activity. But bye bye Overclock.
Something is still going to have to be done and Inko has realised that there is something wrong with what she's been told. Tsukauchi knew that there was going to be a problem with lying to Inko about the truth and of course, he's the one who gets hit with it... Time to make the others also have his headache!
My discord is on this code: ZX2R5h2cEm FFN will remove links but you should be able to figure that out.
-ted-
Loved it? Hated it? Found a spelling mistake? Let me know please!