Archivist of Nyx - Yes. Aizawa's not paranoid, he merely understands the situation correctly :V
AngelFallenDemon - For as much as they are slowly changing into less a bunch of students and more force of a nature, he can't just randomly unleash them against nation-level threats. The press would gobble him up :v But it's probably rather tempting to him.
SmokyGhoul - Nedzu should finally stop building giant murderrobots and invest the cash in his faculty because damn, that's going to be a lot of burnout.
PLPanda - And it's not the only semi-religious movement concerning peoples of the Midoriya family that's currently active on the UA. Wait for it though :v
Kokiri hero - Let's just say that the situation is still developing.
ASX-000 - YES.
PokeKing Charizard - That would only increase the ammount of traumatized teachers and we all know it. Though if Compress brings Twice over for some tea party at Midoriya, I lowkey imagine Eraserhead secretly wanting him to make a copy of himself to go to school in his stead. Unfortunately, the whole 'memory transfer to the original once the clone is destroyed' mechanic makes it kinda redundant. He would still remember what happened.
TheGreatBubbaJ - Sort of :v
Dragonjek - Yes, that'll certainly come out of the blue.
Trixuny - It's like reverse Cure to Evil, in that in CtE the name Midoriya eventually becomes associated with highest level of professional villainy :v
Detrametal - Aiko is out to get everyone. Except for her beloved onichan, and the rest of her family (that includes Yoichi, apparently). Everyone else is a fair game to one degree or another xD Also *leans towards the ear* OMLETTE DU FROMAGE. *sudden fainting*
Grayashura - Ah yes. Quirk: Awesome. That would be rather awesome quirk, ngl xD
TheSilverboar - A valid criticism. I do believe that the event was slightly tilted towards letting the Gen Ed student show their mettle (Midoriya probably made sure of that). Then again, we don't know how many items per person were allowed for the obstacle race (and I believe that Nedzu allowed one per person at best, but since the 40 students pooled their resources, it let them counter a lot of quirks - probably only the best sharpshooters did the sniping routine over the fall). And the copycat quirks being allowed to stack up before combat makes sense in my opinion, because this type of quirks isn't exactly supposed to be used on its own. You probably borrow quirks of other heroes present at the scene (it's like a nice force multiplier), and showing his profficiency in using quirks of other people is copycats' equivalent of showing off your own quirk.
Walkmanapprenticewordsmith - :D Great to see you enjoying my fic!
(***)
Speaking honestly, the announcement that they all passed and that they all were going to the camp was redundant. They all knew that. Chances that someone failed the written text were abysmal, they crushed the practical exam and they also apparently received bonus points for psychological warfare.
It was a crushing victory.
And that's without adding the part where Yaoyorozu and Midoriya got A LOT of additional points for planning the combat encounters. Midoriya immediately tried to complain that a lot of his classmates created their own plans (and he merely greenlighted them), but Yaomomo and Aizawa stared at him until he went quiet.
Then, Tooru dropped a bomb.
"Hey, we have a free day tomorrow, yes?" She said loudly. "How about we go shopping for the trip together?"
To a surprise of absolutely no one, the proposition was widely accepted. Although widely didn't mean universally. In the end, Ashido, Midoriya, Shoji, Uraraka, Iida, Yaoyorozu, Tokoyami, Kirishima, Mineta and Jirou decided to go there together.
It was a mall in a safe and secure area of Shizuoka. The place where the villains didn't dare to trespass, at least the serious one. Especially when All Might was around.
(***)
Their group quickly vanished, leaving them alone. It was… well, maybe not awkward. It wasn't their first (de facto) date, just…
"I checked on the internet!" Izuku smiles at Uraraka. She loves his smile. "There is a place here which is absolutely famous for its mochi." And he was adamant that he owes her one for that expletive cluster bomb.
"And I found a restaurant which is known for delicious katsudon." She replies. Two can play this game! Of course, he smiles even wider. "So, where do we go first?" That was the really important question.
Unfortunately, before she got her answer, Izuku suddenly froze. He quickly pulled his phone out of his pocket (that alone was telling, when they were together, their phones were really low on the list of importance).
Whatever he read on it, that wasn't good news.
"Ochaco, we have a problem." The fact that he used her name without even the slightest bit of hesitation, told her everything she needed to know about the severity of the problem. "Do you trust me?"
"Absolutely." She replies. This belief isn't shaken even by how utterly bonkers the instructions she received are.
(***)
Their target seems to be hanging around the mall, alone. That's… actually pretty helpful? All Might's hoodie and a backpack. Messy green hair. Just like Overhaul said. Then again, all that Liberator had to do was to just check the last UA School Festival footage.
UA was really helpful in its own downfall. That was awfully nice of it.
It was really going to be a child's play. Especially with the Mechanist making sure that no warning message could leave the mall and that its security would be unable to witness what was happening.
Hacking all the security cameras in the mall was an achievement. But one that the Mechanist was fully capable of, even if he had to be on-site for it to achieve that in a reasonable timeframe.
Liberator gave him a sign. The kid got a message indicating that there is a bomb in the mall (and there truly was one), and that it won't blow up if he follows the instructions (and that was a lie, because Liberator was blowing the mall up regardless of the outcome).
The kid cooperated. At least after checking out and finding out that he can't phone anyone.
They led him out to one of the less used exits from the mall. There was a car waiting for them - a limousine, in fact (he knows what style is). This time, Liberator showed up in person. He stood in front of it, its back leaning onto it, smiling at the clearly spooked hero trainee in front of him.
"Nice for you to cooperate willingly, Midoriya Izuku." He says. "Please step inside the car. And act nicely."
Midoriya glares at him. But obeys.
(***)
"You know, you really pissed Overhaul off." Liberator announces when Midoriya takes his seat. He is sitting next to him, while the Mechanist is in front of them, facing them both. He can drive the car remotely from this position.
Two SS-Rank villains going out to kidnap a single kid felt rather excessive. Then again, if Garaki was right, and the kid truly was All Might's successor… it was hard to say, but the recordings from the School Festival seemed to suggest that.
And they were SUPERvillains. And the kid was the potential One for All Holder. User of the same power that ended All for One. They weren't stupid. The fact that this power was transferred gave them a window to nip it in the bud, while its user was still relatively weak.
There was no reason to go at him with thugs with steadily improving quality. This was a moment to go all out right from the start.
Liberator volunteered. Garaki wanted the kid alive for some unspecified tests regarding One for All. Liberator wasn't going to complain. He gets to kill a lot of civilians (and probably some hero trainees in their midst) AND would have his standing in the PLF improved. Win-win situation.
Mechanist was there to offer support. And because Overhaul felt anxious about sending someone with such a non-quirk as Liberator's against a One for All Holder. Liberator found his lack of faith disturbing.
Powerful quirks tended to make you an idiot, in his opinion. Even if you end up hating the quirks in questions. Perhaps especially so.
"Good." Midoriya replies calmly. Well, almost. There is still a bead of sweat here and there, but his self-control is impressive. "Him being angry makes my day better."
Significantly unheroic. Did All Might really choose someone like that for his heir? How odd.
Liberator wished that they could kill him. Cut him into pieces, promising that if he won't resist, the bomb won't go off… and then, when they'll no longer be able to resist, make it go off. And let him know that his friends are now dead. Alas, business came first.
"So do you know who we are?" Liberator asks. Introductions are important, and… well, there is a reason why the heroes didn't arrest him. His face is unknown to the world. He likes it that way.
He wants Midoriya to realize how little he knows. How little power he has left.
"You are Akihiko Arakawa, known also as the SS-Rank villain Liberator." Midoriya promptly replies and all of the Liberator's expectations for the talk fly through the window. Nobody knew his real name! "You are the leader of the equalizers, a terrorist movement composed entirely of people with weak or entirely useless quirks who feel discriminated against."
How did he know that? HOWHOWHOWHOWHOWHOW
"Considering the fact that the life of people like that is an utopia when compared to the quirkless, you are pretty much discount Eclipse. That, or you simply like to kill and decided to attach an ideology to it." Midoriya continues. "Your quirk is Neoteny, which slowed down your growth and made you perpetually look like an eight years old child. Very useful in avoiding the police and heroes, even if they run into your right next to the ground zero of a terrorist attack. "
"You, how do you…"
"And you are Mechanist." Midoriya turns his head towards the other supervillain. Who only outwardly looks like a human being. "You have no other name. You are a cyborg, practically speaking one and only out there. You're the leader of the Clockwork Tower, an entirely online criminal syndicate. Since 90% of your body is made of cables and metal, you are also de facto quirkless."
Mechanist doesn't move. He doesn't even blink. But his eyes are on Midoriya, and if Liberator knows him well enough, he is absolutely mortified.
"How do you know?" Liberator asks. Calmly. Let's ignore the fact that he still has a knife in his hand, and Mechanist is ready to detonate the bomb at a moment's notice. It'd be like blinking for him. Way too fast for Midoriya to stop that. They are very, very calm. Not at an edge of going batshit murderous.
"How about a trade?" Midoriya asks. "I'll tell you how I learned your real name… if you tell me how much you know about the PLF' spy on the UA. The one that told Overhaul which teachers would be present during the USJ attack. Do you know who they are?"
Liberator considered telling him to fuck off. Or pretending that there was no spy. But… Mechanist learning about that name is bad enough (he at least will stay silent, even if not for free). But if Midoriya is captured by Garaki… if he'll tell him the Liberator's true name… people will die.
Midoriya isn't leaving this meeting alive. Fuck Garaki. Liberator will tell him that Midoriya resisted. Oops, accidents happen and all of that. And since he is dying either way… for now, Liberator needs to do whatever he can do to find out HOW. THE FUCK. THIS KID KNOWS THAT NAME.
"Very well, kid." It might sound odd coming from an apparent eight year old… well, he is forty-five on the inside. "All I know for almost certain… is that he or she was present during the USJ attack. And that they seem to have developed moral concerns about working with us after that."
Mechanist's emotionless, doll-like face turns towards Liberator. Impossible to read, but easy enough to deduce.
"Ah, I see." Midoriya nods. "Thank you for your cooperation. Also, I'm not telling you anything in return, and you're under arrest. Please do not resist."
What? WHAT?
"Are you high, kid?" Liberator laughs. A bit more nervously than he wanted to. "You are in a car with two supervillains. And if you try to do anything, we'll blow up your friends and the entire mall full of people."
"No, you won't." Midoriya replies. The sweating is gone. Only ironclad determination is left. "Did you remember to check my backpack? Or were you too sure that I was caught to do so?"
Three long seconds of silence. Liberator and Midoriya are staring at each other in silence. Mechanist slowly extends his hand and pulls Midoriya's backpack up. Then he unzips it and looks inside.
And then he twists the backpack in his hands, letting Liberator see what was inside.
Their bomb.
HOW
"Your insurance is gone." Midoriya announces and Liberator's face turns towards his once again. There is a look of smug satisfaction mixed with some truly predatory grin on it. "You are practically powerless, and Mechanist is a programmer more than a fighter. So I'm not locked in here with you." A greenish lightning envelops his hands. "You are locked in here with me."
(***)
"Hey, I understood that reference!" Yoichi Shigaraki shouts in the deepest recesses of the One for All.
Nana sighs. First Holder was a massive treasure trove of really old memes and cultural trivia. Antediluvian, even. All for One seemed to have infected their newest Holder with those as well. Enough to make Yoichi react like that regularly. Which, Nana was almost sure of, was a reference as well.
It was a pain to deal with.
Unfortunately for Izuku Midoriya, Liberator and Mechanist promptly vanished, enveloped by black sludge. Must have been some quirk-equivalent of a 'get out of jail' card. Probably a summoning quirk. Curious that Eclipse didn't have it. Maybe the PLF got it after that fiasco?
Fortunately for Izuku Midoriya, the bomb was already disarmed. So they couldn't blow him up remotely. And the car - now apparently controlled by someone else - didn't crash into something. Instead, it began its long road back to the mall.
Well, that was an adventure.
"I have so many questions." Lariat decides to say. "What the hell was that? Why did someone warn Midoriya through the internet that he is about to be kidnapped? Why did Midoriya let himself be kidnapped just to interrogate his kidnappers, while sitting on a supposedly remotely disarmed bomb capable of levelling down a mall?! And why did he tell his girlfriend not to tell anyone while she was fetching said bomb for him? What the fuck?! Yoichi!" He turns towards him. "You know something! Tell us!"
Nana agrees with this suspicion. Yoichi seems way too relaxed.
"Hey, Midoriya is pretty much Nedzu and All Might wearing a trenchcoat." Yoichi replies. "What did you expect? All Might had Nedzu and Sir Nighteye for the behind-the-stage wetwork, he is doing this on his own."
"That doesn't tell us anything." En comments.
"Midoriya has his own information sources, clearly." Yoichi shrugs. "All those forums and networks for disenfranchised that he frequented for years. And we all know who taught him how to gather intel. It was one of his internet acquaintances that warned him, someone who apparently knows a lot about the PLF's inner workings. Someone whom Izuku trusts a lot."
"And the 'not tell anyone' bit?" Nana asks. That bit worried her a lot. Uraraka fetching a package that SHE KNEW WAS A BOMB (albeit a disarmed one) for the boy she was in love with was… a bit…
Worrying.
"There was a risk the school would call off the training camp, and then his friends would all be sad." Yoichi replies and they all sigh in unison, Yoichi included. Yes, that sounds like a very Izuku Midoriya thing to do.
At least that boy wasn't an idiot. He immediately writes a message to Nedzu that one of his internet acquaintances told him that Liberator and Mechanist were working alongside Overhaul.
Not being able to see what happened before they moved in was a problem. Nana couldn't shake the feeling that something was avoiding them. Something, probably, very important. It was… a very strange incident, on so many levels that it was hard to sum them all up.
Unless Midoriya actually tells someone the truth, or their connection will grow to the point where they can talk… they'll be forced to keep picking up shards of truth. And Midoriya isn't giving them a lot of those.
(***)
"Izuku!" She is waiting for him at the entrance to the mall. The others are absolutely unaware of what happened… and still shopping merrily.
He steps out of the limousine, looking… well, it's obvious that whatever happened, wasn't what he hoped to happen.
"Och...Ochaco!" Yeah, the familiar awkwardness is back. "Sorry for all of this, but I can explain!"
"Do it then." She stands there, with her arms crossed. Like her mom did in their entrance door that one time that dad got drunk and came home hours late. She even adapts a similar look on her face!
It works. As expected.
"You know how my quirk came up recently?" She nods. "Well, I met a lot of people on forum for the quirkless, the complex mutants and generally the victims of discrimination. Some of them… Well, some of them have ties with the villains. Or are villains." Her eyes grow wider and he panics. "I'm not working for them! It's… like police informants, only more private, you know? Nedzu has a lot of those as well."
Well, that sounded like something that Nedzu would have.
"The point is, one of my… acquaintances warned me that someone wants to kidnap me. Someone from the PLF." He continues. "And they planted a bomb in the mall to make me cooperate. The problem is, the people responsible would detonate it after capturing me, just for kicks, and they took down the communications so we wouldn't be able to evacuate people. My…. associate, whom I trust by the way even if I don't who they are, ensured me he managed to remotely disarmed the bomb, so I figured out the plan how to try to apprehend the villains. Something that I, and I assure you, I only attempted because I couldn't call the police or other heroes. Unfortunately, they managed to escape."
He looks down.
"Uhm, sorry for scaring you." He says. "And for… well… wasting the date."
"Izuku…" She pinches the bridge of her nose in pure exasperation. "You could have died. We could have died. It's not the time to think about the date." Although she really misses the mochi she was promised, she isn't going to lie. Then again, they both agreed that heroism came first. "What now?"
"I messaged Nedzu." He says back. "We should keep what happened under wraps."
Alright, Ochaco. It's time to act. Even if you feel like screaming at yourself for being so… bold?
Two steps forward. Hold his hands. Ignore the blush on his face. Ignore the blush on your face. Take a deep breath. Speak.
"Izuku." She says in her most official tone. It's almost enough to make him jump back. But she isn't letting him go. "You do know that I'm your girlfriend, yes?" He nods. "And you DO know that you can tell me everything and I'm not going to judge you for that? Nor I'm going to tell anyone else unless you'll tell me that I can?"
"Y…yes." He replies. She nods and takes a step back. Giving him some space. And letting her heart stop fluttering like that. She was just holding his hands, dammit! Sure, in the right position to have a close-up on his face (and it almost felt like she was about to k… ki…kiss), but…
"That's good." She says. Almost confidently. "Because I agree with Aiko. Your hair is full of secrets. And I think that if there is one thing that you want more than anything, then it's not having secrets. Just don't go bald, alright? I like your hair."
That takes him off-guard. Enough to look at her for a few seconds before descending into a laughing fit. That she promptly joined.
"You…" Izuku finally manages to catch his breath. "You should ask Aiko about it. Trust me, that would be enlightening. But for now… I think we'll make it to that restaurant with mochi if we hurry up."
Oh. That was a very good idea.
(***)
"WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT KID?!" Liberator yells, still kneeling in a pool of black liquid. It was… not a pleasant form of warping, but it had its positives. Such as an instantaneous, unblockable exit if everything suddenly went to hell.
It even worked when you didn't, technically, have a mouth. But Mechanist looked like he really wished he had one.
"Why didn't you catch him?" Garaki, his little abomination responsible for the warp and Overhaul were there. Wherever 'there' was. Garaki was the mouthy one in this, of course.
"Catch him?!" Mechanist manages to orient himself vertically, quietly beeping out in a binary code. Liberator could barely follow it, what he did hear suggested that those were mostly error messages. Mechanist's equivalent of cursing quietly. Liberator himself is almost ready to stand up. "Are you fucking kidding me? We barely got out alive!"
"So it was a trap." Garaki clicks his tongue. "What heroes?"
"No fucking heroes, dipshit!" Liberator yells at him. He really is in a bad mood. "Just that fucking kid. He somehow found our bomb, disabled it, sneaked it with him into the car, then called us out on our fucking insurance, and was about to either arrest us or torture us to death. He claimed the former but his face said the latter, godfuckingdamnit."
"What?" Garaki is clearly shocked. Overhaul is unreadable. "He is a kid, how could he…"
"He knew who we were/are." Mechanist announces. "Name/designation, affiliation, quirk/quirkless. He knows that we have a spy/ally on the UA and that they were present during the USJ attack/altercation." Well, that's one way of sharing the news without killing Liberator.
"What?!" Garaki exclaims in total shock. Overhaul is marginally less of an idiot.
"Are you suggesting that we have a leak?" He asks. Liberator does his best NOT to attempt murder right here and there.
"He knew we were coming, you fucking ass, listen to what I'm fucking telling you!" Liberator has no filter when sufficiently angered. And right now? Woo, boy. He wasn't THAT angry in a while. "And… wait, Mechanist, did he…"
"I suspect that someone managed to hack/enter into our network." Mechanist replies. "I managed to find signs of intrusion/entrance, but nothing enough to track/locate the person in question. We were observed/watched through cameras/and more. The bomb was remotely disabled before it was planted. The perpetrator must have warned Midoriya/victim and told him what to do."
"Nedzu?" Overhaul asks.
"If Nedzu got so deep into our network, we wouldn't be here." Garaki replies. "All Might would have swept in and gotten us all out of the picture. But whoever it is… Midoriya trusts him enough to risk the lives of a lot of people by acting along."
And whoever they are, they aren't heroic enough to simply rat them out. Some internal threat? Villainous competition? Why did they work with the heir apparent of All Might? It made absolutely no sense.
"So we need to kidnap him even more." Overhaul concludes. "In order to find out what he is hiding. Great. Well, no biggie." They have just the right plan for that. After all, UA Training Camp is just behind the corner, right?
(***)
Uraraka decided to do what Izuku told her. So she did ask Aiko about… well, hair full of secrets. And she did mention that Izuku told her to ask his sister about it (thankfully she was invited to a dinner merely three days later, and that was a perfect occasion).
She wasn't buying the 'Aiko Midoriya is an eldritch abomination' trend. But oh boy, if the revelations that girl handed to her weren't a direct risk to her sanity.
"Could… could you repeat that?" She manages to say after several seconds of shocked silence.
"Onichan's quirk is transferable." She replies. "It comes with the spirits of its past users. They see what he sees and hear what he hears.."
Okay, that was the first revelation that almost knocked her flat. There were more. Thus far she more or less computes, albeit the implications for her future love life (the very idea is kinda scary) are worrying.
"And those… ghosts… belong to former heroes, including someone who's pretty much mentor slash adoptive mother of All Might." Ochaco says. Aiko nods, with a look on her face betraying how boring it has to be for her to describe it twice.
"And onichan thinks that explaining his internet contacts is something best done face to face." Aiko ads. "Because he is ashamed of that, for some reason. So he is keeping the truth from them until their connection grows strong enough that he can explain it all in person."
He has a handful of pro-heroes living in his head full-time, AND HE STILL MANAGES TO KEEP SECRETS FROM THEM?! Her boyfriend (yes, she loves the sound of those two words, sue her about it) is absolutely crazy. In the positive sense.
Well, that at least explains why he couldn't tell her a lot. And suggests that there is a deadline after which he'll be ready to share everything with her. Something that he seems to be longing for.
"Hair full of secrets." Uraraka mumbles. Mostly to herself. But Aiko manages to hear it too.
"Hair full of secrets, yes." She shrugs. "I could act as an intermediary, but onichan thinks that he should do that in person. 'They deserve that' and so on. Are you worried about your privacy?"
Should Uraraka be surprised by how mature Aiko sounds? It's odd. Somehow she feels like she is talking with an adult and not with a little girl. A bit worrying, really. Then again, Aiko varies on that field. Sometimes more like a child, sometimes… less.
"Errr, a bit?" She prefers not to think about it.
"Do not worry." Aiko replies calmly. "They are used to looking the other way when adult things are involved. Or so says Uncle Yoichi."
"Uncle Yoichi?" She doesn't remember that name from Izuku's list of uncles.
"My uncle." She replies. "He is more than two hundred years old and lives in onichan's quirk. We have tea parties on Fridays."
Uraraka left the meeting deeply worried. Not about her boyfriend (she was, if anything, reassured on that field although she thought that he overdid with his attempt to make the ancient heroes NOT hate him). But by the fact that maybe, just maybe, Hitoshi was right about Aiko.
(***)
Was Izuku trying to find the traitor... or was he trying to find out if the PLF managed to figure out who the traitor is? I mean, isn't it a bit odd how we're still not having any Izuku Midoriya 1st person PoVs? Hmph.
[Two of AO3 tags are 'UA has a traitor.' and 'and you won't believe who that is'. Keep guessing, it makes my day fun :v Who is it? Or is that all a red herring since I love my sudden plottwists?]
Also, sorry for the lack of fluff, I needed to introduce some new supervillains AND perhaps slightly show up Midoriya's scary side. Next chapter is mostly fluff though.