Now let's wrap up last chapter's awkward plotline so we can get into the final run of this fic!

"Wow...Iida really lives here ?"

Shouto nods. "I know, it's rather underwhelming considering the status of the Iida name, but they've always been modest about their wealth."

Midoriya splutters. "Modest? This is modest ?"

Shouto ignores him, pressing a button on the gate of the mansion they stood in front of. "Good afternoon, this is Todoroki Shouto and Midoriya Izuku to see Iida Tensei."

A few moments of discussion over the autocom, the gate starts opening, and the two slip inside.

"I really hope Iida's calmed down a bit," Midoriya says, looking torn. "I can't believe he'd toss his dream away like that."

"Iida is an intelligent person. I'm sure he's already realised his error," Shouto replies, refusing to acknowledge the twist in his stomach at the recent events.

No matter what he tries, he still can't get it out of his head...

A few days earlier...

"What do you mean, no?"

Iida doesn't even bat an eye at the Chief of Police and the heroes' disbelief. "Exactly what it sounds like. I refuse to allow the proof to be covered up. This was my decision, my mistake. I won't support any lie that says otherwise."

Midoriya is openly gaping, and Todoroki feels a little faint. Iida had clearly not been thinking straight during the fight with Stain, but he'd seemed more like himself once Midoriya had, well, 'Midoriya'd' his way into his problems. While it doesn't feel like a win, the police and heroes are offering an out that they dearly need.

"Iida, be reasonable," Manual says. "I know it might seem unfair to have your accomplishments given to someone el-"

"Accomplishments?" Iida interrupts, voice dark. "What accomplishments? Of the three people in these beds, I am the last one deserving of any reward. You can throw the book at me, I was already planning on dropping out of UA and the heroics program."

Both Todoroki and Midoriya turn their heads in horror.

"What?"

"Iida! You can't be serious."

Their classmate just shakes his head. "I decided when I took the internship that no matter what happened, I wouldn't try to hide it. I didn't want to bring the Hero Killer to justice, I wanted him dead . Society has a duty to punish me for it – I won't sully heroics with my actions.

Gran Torino whistles, sharing a look with Manual before shaking his head. "Damn kid, I know the teen years are all about low self esteem, but this is taking it a little too far, don't you think?"

Chief Tsuragamae on the other hand, sighs and scratches his muzzle. "Look, we can hold off on an official statement for a few days. You're young, take some time to think about what you'll be doing to your future if you don't accept this offer."

"Iida, please! Think about what you're saying," Midoriya pleads. "You can't be a hero with a criminal record."

Iida's face looks like it could have been carved from stone.

"If I've learned anything over the past few days, it's that I have absolutely no right to call myself a hero."

Shouto remembers how he felt when he heard those words – like ice had wrapped around his heart. Iida has come from a Heroic legacy that he can genuinely be proud of, with a supportive family life. How can someone go from that, to throwing away everything? What happened between his brother's injury and the attack on Stain to take it from pure anger to this strange self-deprecating wreck?

When they're escorted to Iida's room, the teenager is sitting at his desk, engrossed in whatever he's reading and barely acknowledges their arrival. Midoriya, always the first to try and diffuse a situation, immediately walks over with a smile.

"How are you doing Iida?" he asks. "I heard you're still on house arrest?"

"Hn…"

Shouto follows in Midoriya's wake, and looks over Iida's shoulder, frowning when he makes out the contents on the screen.

"Why are you researching scandals to do with Hero Agencies?"

Iida flinches, and immediately reduces the window.

"Why are you here?" he asks, turning round to stare at them. "It's safer for you to distance yourself from me at this point."

"We're here because we're worried about you," Midoriya says, frowning at Iida's dull tone. "You haven't been acting like yourself at all!"

"And our teachers may have encouraged us to talk to you about going along with Chief Tsuragamae's offer," Shouto adds. Midoriya immediately turns and glares at him, which Todoroki doesn't quite get – surely it's best to be honest?

Iida's face immediately darkens.

"Thank you for worrying, but my mind hasn't changed," he says. "I'm going to take the full blame for what happened."

"But why though?" Midoriya asks, sounding as confused as Todoroki feels. "You made mistakes, but it shouldn't cost you everything you worked for."

"Why shouldn't it?" Iida counters. "If I'd not been a Hero student, and gone after Stain as a civilian, would I have avoided punishment for using my quirk intentionally to hunt him down?"

"…Probably," Shouto replies, confused at the logic. "Given the nature of the Hero Killer, they'd have wanted to sweep any non-hero involvement under the rug, or risk vigilantism in larger numbers."

Midoriya frowns. "Actually, they would probably throw the book at a civilian, if just to show what happens when you break the rules. Especially since a civilian wouldn't have had any training. We're getting special treatment because we're being taught to be heroes."

"Exactly!" Iida yells, jumping out of his seat, more animated than they'd seen him in some time. "Special treatment for heroes and heroes to be. It's everywhere, and it's caused Heroes to lose sight of their purpose."

Shouto's eyes narrow. That is a very dangerous line of thinking – exactly how long did Iida have to talk with Stain before the two of them arrived?

"Iida, where is this coming from? That almost sounds like something Stain would say-"

"Because he was right!" Iida yells, shutting both of them up. "Stain was a monster, but I can't stand here and pretend his mindset was entirely wrong. Not any more!"

"You believe Heroes should be culled?" Shouto asks in dread, though his eyes are flitting over to Midoriya – who is clearly two seconds from exploding – and Iida shakes his head.

"Of course not, Stain was a danger to society and the majority of his actions and beliefs were completely out of order," Iida replies, looking at Todoroki as if he's the crazy one, and Midoriya's shoulders drop down to 'friend' and not 'Hero-intern' again. Shouto feels his own relax too. "But Heroes have altered drastically in recent history, and not necessarily for the better."

"You realised this from one fight with Stain?" Shouto continues, and Iida shakes his head.

"No, there was more to it than that. But think about that event. The fact that your acts are considered criminal is proof enough," Iida argues. "You came to save me, it was clear cut self defence, but it's still illegal. And yet, the police are perfectly willing to let us off scot-free as to not damage our future careers. Would a civilian get that kind of leeway?"

"Well, it was an extreme situation…" Midoriya offers, though looks torn. Iida, sensing weakness, then turns to Shouto.

"And you, Todoroki? I might have missed the fight, but I heard all about it after the fact. Exactly how much does Endeavour hide behind his title of Hero? Would he get away with it if he was in any other career?"

Shouto keeps his face passive, but Iida doesn't seem to care, spinning on his heel and bringing up the tabs on his computer again.

"I haven't been able to stop thinking about it. Even before I tracked down Stain, I had a conversation with...someone, and the more I dig, the worse it gets. It seems like any time a Hero is suspected of misconduct, it's settled out of court, if it's not just brushed to the side entirely."

Midoriya is quick to lean over the chair, staring at the screen in shock. "What? Surely that would make front pages, or be more of a scandal...wait, I'm not actually seeing records-"

"You have to do some serious digging, and read between the lines, but with my family's resources, it's not hard to find," Iida explains. "It's a rather terrifying rabbit hole once you start."

Shouto feels rather numb. He'd always assumed Endeavour was an anomaly, but if what Iida is saying is true…

"I don't understand, why would anyone do that?" Midoriya asks, and Iida gives a sad laugh.

"The Hero Commission makes a truly impressive amount of money off of heroes, and they run on a clean cut image. A hero can't be caught committing a crime, or they lose their reputation, and it provides ammo for the extreme groups pressing for a more relaxed legislation regarding quirk use," he explains. "Heroes were once a vital role, but now they've become government-approved-idols. Just look at how many new students graduate each year, from the multiple hero schools. How many new sidekicks and new agencies crop up, and yet crime doesn't appear to go down anywhere that gets an influx of new heroes – but the advertising and merchandise certainly does. In fact, Stain's arrival on the scene had more of an influence on crime rates in the cities he appeared in than any new hero that debuted that year."

His face goes bitter. "As someone told me, 'you're considered a success by how much your face is plastered all over a bedroom wall rather than how much crime you stop.'"

"This is a rather extreme turn of opinion," Shouto offers. "I've never heard you speak of this before."

He dearly hopes that 'someone' isn't one of Stain's obsessive followers online. He'd been reacting badly all throughout the fight, but he'd thought Midoriya had gotten through to him.

"Who told you that?" Midoriya asks, looking outraged, right on cue. "That's blatantly untrue."

"Oh? So your room isn't plastered with the posters and merchandise of All Might and other heroes?"

Midoriya flinches, and Shouto quickly steps forward to interject. But before he can speak up, Iida pales and bows his head, looking genuinely apologetic.

"Forgive me, I shouldn't have said that. You and Todoroki are exactly what heroes should be, you don't care about any of that. And your admiration of All Might is perfectly reasonable. But I'm not like you."

"Iida..."

"Because if my plan had worked, I'd have murdered Stain," Iida continues, his head still down. "And while I was trying to find ways to help my brother and track him down, it was made clear to me that if I had not been a hero student, my actions in doing so would have gotten me arrested. Yet I believed that factor put me above the law."

He looks up. "So I decided. Once I killed Stain, I'd turn myself in. I'd make it clear that not even Heroes can be above the law. I would accept the highest possible punishment, so long as my brother could get justice."

"Iida…" Midoriya whispers, while Todoroki's face hardens.

"You truly believe that's what your brother would want?" he asks, and Iida shakes his head.

"No, not any more," Iida says, smiling softly. "Midoriya and yourself managed to beat that into me. But that doesn't change what I did. I won't hide behind the adult's capes, I've already sullied my brother's ideals enough.

Midoriya opens his mouth – and then closes it, looking up at Todoroki in dismay. Shouto doubts he looks much better. They'd really been hoping that Iida would have calmed down, and remembered their words from the fight with Stain – but if anything, his anger and determination has only grown stronger.

It probably won't mean much, coming from him of all people, but Shouto does wonder if they should try guilting him with what this decision will do to his family – when they hear a cheerful laugh from the doorway.

"Wow, Gokudera really did a number on you huh? Five minutes of conversation and he's got you throwing away everything."

They all turn to see a tall, black haired teen leaning in the door, smiling and looking perfectly at home.

"Sorry, I pressed the buzzer and said I wanted to talk to you, and I think your mother thought I was a classmate so just let me right in."

"Wha-who are you?" Iida splutters. The stranger chuckles and walks in.

"Hi there," he says. "I'm Yamamoto Takeshi, and I was hoping I could talk to you?"

"Yamamoto…?" Iida repeats, before his eyes widen. "Wait, are you-"

"Yeah, I'm the spinal guy," Yamamoto says, as if that explains anything – although judging from Iida's pale face, it probably does. "Heard you were looking for me a while back."

Iida suddenly looks quite embarrassed.

"I...yes, but...what are you doing here?"

Yamamoto grins. "Well, we had a very frantic Present Mic show up at the restaurant, begging Gokudera to take back whatever he told you, and I figured I should make a house call."

"Whose Gokudera?" Midoriya questions, and Shouto mentally logs the name just to make sure it's not on any of the warning lists for extremist anti-hero groups.

"Actually I think some guy called 'Torino-something' told All Might, who told Aizawa who then threatened Present Mic," Yamamoto explains with a grin. "To be honest, we weren't sure what he was talking about, and then Gokudera started inching for the door, and it all came out. Tsuna is livid with him."

Iida frowns. "But I'm the one who approached on your-"

Yamamoto holds up a hand. "Yeah, and granted, he probably had some valid points, but you were clearly not in a place to hear something like that. Anything that brings Heroes to our doors in a non-customer capacity these days kind of puts us on edge too."

"Why would Heroes be coming to you in-"

"Oh! Tsuna, right! You're from the Takesushi restaurant," Midoriya exclaims, face lighting up. "Are you guys all okay? I heard all about that Villain attack on the news."

Shouto slowly nods as well. He vaguely remembers Endeavour being irritated at Villains attacking so close to UA – and even more irritated that the inhabitants had apparently fought them off themselves.

"Huh? Oh yeah, we're fine," Yamamoto says. "But not long after, we got a visit from your buddy here."

His eyes flit across both Midoriya and Todoroki, before landing on Iida again. He gives a thumbs up and tosses it over his shoulder.

"So, could we maybe go for a walk while we talk?" he asks. "You've got some crazy grounds out there."

Iida looks awkward, but gives a shaky nod.

"Um, sure…" he says, before glancing over at the two of them. "Apologies, I know you came to talk to me, but I don't think there's anything left to say."

"Wait, Iida-"

Iida doesn't even hesitate, walking out the door, with Yamamoto on his heels, leaving both of them staring at the door.

"Well, I guess we'll have to try again tomorrow," Midoriya says, only for Todoroki to shake his head.

"Nope. We're following them."

"Wait, we are?"

"There's something about that guy, and that restaurant, which doesn't make sense," Shouto says. "I want to make sure that Iida's new ideas haven't come from him, or that he's encouraging them."

He heads out the door, Midoriya quick on his heels.

The two of them take care to stay a good distance from the pair in front of them. Thankfully, the grounds, while big, is littered with a decent amount of foliage and trees, so they can stay out of site.

The two of them stop in the middle of a clear area – which judging from the dirt streaks on the ground, is often used to train the Iida's trademark engine quirk – and Shouto glances round before taking a stand behind the closest tree. Midoriya is at his back, but does look a little guilty. Todoroki understands the sentiment, but Iida got this mindset from somewhere , and leaving him alone has proven to be a bad idea.

He also knows from listening in from Endeavour and his support staff, that Takesushi has become something of a hush hush word at UA…

He's pulled out of that musing however, when he finally picks up the voices of the duo, as they sit on the grass.

"-Is really worried about you. Present Mic couldn't give us a lot of details about what happened recently, but since you came to the restaurant not long before it all went down, they thought we might know something about it."

"None of what I did was Gokudera's fault," Iida replies. "He didn't say anything wrong. I was already planning...most, of what I did. He just made me realise how hypocritical I was being."

"Still, Present Mic said you were going to drop out of that fancy school?" Yamamoto asks. "If you do that, there's no way you can get a Hero license, right? Sure that's what you want?"

Iida turns his head away. "I broke the law. I tried to do something unforgivable. I have no right to attend UA any more."

Behind him, Midoriya gasps, and looks like he wants to move, but stills when Yamamoto's head turns in the same direction.

"That's not what I asked," Yamamoto says. "I don't know what you did, but do you really want to give up on your dream?"

Iida tenses...and then sags.

"No, and I hate it," Iida says. "Even knowing what I know now, even seeing the blatant hypocrisy first-hand, I still want to be a hero. I want to help people, and I know I can help the most people if I can use my quirk. I want to be like my brother, and Midoriya and Todoroki and All Might and Eraserhead and everyone else who upholds the ideals I believed were mandatory. How can I still want that after knowing what I know? Knowing that I'm not like them."

"Being a good person isn't something you are or aren't," Yamamoto says, looking confused. "Lots of good people do bad things, and bad people can do good. You don't stop playing a game just because your teammates have different ideals than you."

He then stands up, dusting his knees, and looks over the grounds.

"You know, I lost faith in my dream once too," he says. "It wasn't anything as high and mighty as yours, but I was putting everything into it. I was obsessed with it, to the point that when I felt I messed up, I didn't even see a reason to carry on."

Iida looks up. "What did you do?"

Yamamoto laughs. "Well, I didn't get over it alone. I was lucky enough to have friends who reached out to help me. By the looks of things, you have the same."

Behind the tree, Midoriya huffs a laugh, and Todoroki feels his lips twitch upwards.

"And if I've learned anything after meeting Tsuna, it's that 'unforgivable' is actually a much higher bar than you'd think" Yamamoto continues. "Everyone makes mistakes, and if you still want to be a Hero, but have these doubts, maybe you can have both."

Todoroki can't see it, but he suspects Iida is frowning when he stands to join Yamamoto.

"Do you really think anything will change if you drop out or complain about the system as you are?" Yamamoto asks, when the other teen is eye to eye. "What reason does anyone have to listen to you?"

Where he stands, Todoroki flinches. He knows the answer to that one quite personally. He has a dead brother, a mentally broken mother, and his own crate of mental issues, and he doesn't think anyone has ever looked twice at his father. Even Endeavour's televised rant during the tournament hadn't even made it past page 3 of the local newspapers.

Heroes are always given the benefit of the doubt.

"I-that's not the point!" Iida yells. "Justice has to be upheld."

"But it's not, you already know there's something wrong with the system, but the system is so powerful nobody can really go up against it. At least, not from the outside."

"What do you mean?"

Yamamoto then shrugs. "When I first met Tsuna, before my Dad adopted him? His extended family wanted him to inherit their business, and he was against it. It wasn't the kind of thing he was comfortable doing, and it was a little shady. He said that if he absolutely couldn't get out of inheriting, he was going to turn the business into something he was comfortable with."

Iida leans back. "...I believe I've met Tsuna, and I can't imagine that went down well. Is this why he's so outspoken regarding expectations?"

Yamamoto cackles. "You have no idea. Anyway, he was adamant. Didn't matter how much people complained or how many enemies he made, he was going to drag it back to what it was supposed to be. No more corruption. And if he couldn't?"

He flashes a grin. "Then he was going to burn the entire thing to the ground. And he meant every word."

Iida shudders, and starts fussing with his glasses.

"I...did he…"

"No, we went for Plan C," Yamamoto says with a smile. "No inheritance, no burning things, just living a plain ordinary life with his friends. Just the way we all like it."

Yamamoto then bends his arms behind his head, and the smile drops for something more serious.

"He didn't want that job, but if he had to take it, he was going to do it on his terms. You know there's a problem, so be the kind of person you believe Heroes should be," he says. "Live your dream. And when you've got the power, the authority, the reputation, bring to light the injustices. Show what Heroes are allowed to get away with. Use the very reputation that keeps the flaws hidden to drag them out. Right now you don't have any power, so they can make you go away and nothing will change – but if you become someone they can't silence…"

"I can change things," Iida gasps, comprehension dawning. "I can even gather evidence from inside."

"You'd end up making a lot of enemies," Yamamoto says. "But from what I can tell, most Heroes really are decent people trying to make a difference. So if you still want to be a Hero, maybe that's the path. Play their game until you've got them outmatched."

His eyes then move from Iida...and straight at the tree Todoroki and Midoriya are hiding behind.

"Plus, it looks like you might have some teammates to help you out. Mah, you going to hide behind that tree all day?"

Shouto pales, his hand tensing on the tree and causing minor frost underneath, while Midoriya squeaks – and the two of them shuffle out somewhat embarrassed. Though not nearly as embarrassed as Iida does, going beet red and flailing his arms about in a familiar manner.

"Todoroki! Midoriya! What are you doing here?"

"We were worried about you," Shouto offers, hiding his own shame well well trained grace. Midoriya has no such shield, looking like he'd rather be anywhere else.

It's an answer that, if anything, makes Iida even redder, and Shouto turns to Yamamoto. "Though it appears my other fears were unfounded. You and your family have had issues with corrupt heroes in the past?"

Yamamoto's grin suddenly falters.

"Huh, what makes you say that?"

"Most people don't even consider the idea that Heroes aren't held to higher standards," Todoroki explains. "Not unless they have first hand experience."

After all, look at how much his father gets away with.

Iida looks away, while comprehension dawns on Yamamoto's face.

"Oh, oh! Yeah, well...something like that," he says. "My friends and I learned about a dozen times over that where there's power, there's corruption. I honestly think it's why Tsuna's terrified of taking on leadership roles. Which sucks cause he's really good at it when he's not having a nervous breakdown over the responsibility."

"Really?" Midoriya asks, embarrassment fading. "He is?"

Yamamoto suddenly laughs, looking nervous. "Oops, uh, let's keep that a secret between us, okay? Don't want that getting back to him and making him freak out again."

He turns back to Iida. "But back to the point, what do you think? Please say you'll consider it? I don't think my old can take much more moping – either from heroes or my brothers.

Iida falters under the three hopeful looks, and sighs before giving a small smile.

"I'll call Chief Tsuragamae today. Tell him I'm accepting his offer."

"Yes!" Midoriya yells, punching the air. "That's great Iida!"

Todoroki lets his own lips quirk up as well, feeling his shoulders relax for the first time since that hospital room.

"Next time, I hope you'll include your friends in your plans, before you do something reckless again," he says. Iida nods, before frowning.

"I still feel guilty about avoiding punishment though," he says, looking over at Yamamoto. "My actions towards you and your family, putting Midoriya and Todoroki in danger to save me from my own foolish..."

"Ah, Don't fall for guilt," Yamamoto warns him, quickly interrupting. "Not when it's something you can't help. I think Gokudera got a good pound of flesh for me, and as for your friends, they chose to come to your aid – wouldn't you have done the same?"

He glances off to the side to grin at Todoroki and Midoriya, while Iida blushes slightly.

"Well, yes, but the reasons I needed help was...well, morally speaking-"

Yamamoto shrugs. "You needed help and they came. Don't let it and your choices drown you. If you keep thinking about the actions of others, you're not going to get anywhere. Trust me on this."

Iida frowns, before comprehension dawns.

"Your injury…?"

Yamamoto's lips quirk upwards. "I recovered from something you're not supposed to recover from . One minute, I'm in a hospital bed and looking at spending the rest of my life in a wheelchair, the next I'm back on my feet like it never happened. You think I didn't have doctors, nurses, patients, all clamouring over me and wanting to know how? I was unconscious – I knew who did it, but I had no clue how. I had to look at desperate parents and bed bound patients and tell them I couldn't help. It sucked ."

He laughs, but this time it's far more bitter than the cheery nature it's been so far. "Part of me almost wished he hadn't saved me," he says. "It probably would have hurt less than the guilt I had from being the one that got a miracle. But it happened, and all I can do is live with that."

Todoroki isn't really sure what they're talking about, but it's not too hard to figure out the basics. Given his brother's predicament, some kind of miraculous recovery would explain why Iida had crossed paths with this teen's family.

"Wait, did you manage to recover from a spinal injury like Ingeniums?" Midoriya gasps. "That's impossible!"

"Apparently not in every universe," Yamamoto mumbles.

"Please, don't bother him about it," Iida requests. "I've already overstepped my bounds regarding his medical history."

Midoriya is already gone, mumbling at a dozen miles an hour about medical quirks and the applications on quirk related injuries. Shouto shakes him out of it by grabbing his shoulder, and gives Iida a nod.

"I'm glad you'll be coming back," he says. "I'm sure your brother will be grateful too. We'll be leaving now."

"Oh, right, we'll see you at school, Iida," Midoriya offers.

"I should head off too," Yamamoto says, stretching his arms.

"Thanks for coming. All of you," Iida offers.

"I feel like we should be thanking you too," Midoriya says, once they've left the Iida grounds and are back on the street. "We weren't getting anywhere with Iida – I was terrified he was going to throw away everything."

Shouto nods. "Considering how adamant he was, I think your presence made the difference."

Yamamoto however, just laughs.

"Nah, that guy there isn't as bad as he thinks he is," he says. "I think he would have made the right choice eventually. But since our group kind of put salt on the wound, I just wanted to try and make it right."

"Still, that was magnanimous of you," Shouto continues. "Considering he clearly caused some slight with your family."

Yamamoto winces. "Caught that huh?"

Of course he did. There's absolutely no reason Iida could have known

about any injury a random stranger had...at least not a good one. Shouto will never call himself a genius, but he can read between the lines.

"Huh, what are you talking about?" Midoriya asks.

"Ah, don't worry about it," Yamamoto says. "It's water under the bridge."

He cracks his neck. "Hopefully though, with this incident out of the way, we can get things back to normal back home. Things really have been too exciting for us lately."

"Next time we meet, we promise it'll be as normal paying customers," Midoriya says with a grin. Yamamoto returns it, and walks off with a casual wave.

"I'll hold you to that!"

Shouto waits until Yamamoto is a suitable distance away, before turning to Midoriya.

"You want to go to that restaurant?" he asks. "Even when the people running it have some distaste for Heroes?"

"I don't think I'd call it distaste," Midoriya replies, as they start walking. "They like our teachers well enough. And I've met with one of them, that Tsuna Yamamoto kept talking about. He had some interesting ideas, but I don't think they believe Heroes are wrong. Yamamoto wouldn't have come all this way if they did."

Shouto can't really argue with that. And he himself would be quite interested in speaking to people who have alternative views on heroics without being villains. It's a rare opportunity – especially when you're related to a very public hero.

And, well, he does enjoy good sushi...