Naruto30 - In a manner of speaking, yes :P
InfinityMask - It was all planned in advance :P And no, Endeavor will not come clean, not yet. There is no one strong enough to replace him as the Number One Hero, and losing that AND HPSC at once would be... disastrous.
Gamer71796 - The swiftness of governmental response will find explanation in this chapter :P
Darkpaladin89 - HPSC won't exist for long tbh. And yeah, Hawks certainly needs a hug.
PokeKing Charizard - Aye. Except faster and with much lesser number of deaths.
TheGreatBubbaJ - It had a very good motivation.
AdrianVnz - All I'm going to say is that Awoo is already present in the chapters written by me thus far :P And Izuku... well, he is probably doing something much better than Gendo Ikari's pose XD You'll understand in a moment. Also I'm pretty sure that the HPSC Valiant is going to be on a lookout for a new job. Or at least will change the name hoping that people won't remember him.
Detrametal - I'm sorry! xD And yes, HPSC fall in TTB was the smoothest out of my fics. In fact it forms a nice contrast to Exiting the Stage, which is basically the same verse except ten years later and with few crucial events playing out differently in the backstory - there, deposing the HPSC is going to require rivers of blood being spilled. Also thank you for your kind words :D
(***)
A few minutes ago
"We don't have much time." Endeavor's voice comes through the phone. Urgency is both in words and in a way they are spoken. "We have a way of minimizing the impact this will have on society, the government and both your party and cabinet, but I need you to act fast and without asking questions. Because we don't have the time for them. I'll explain everything in detail afterwards."
Endeavor was in on this? That was… the man was always rather supportive of the HPSC, but recently something changed. He didn't downright criticize it, but it was rather clear that he stopped supporting it. Not to mention him getting close to the UA. Which meant Nedzu.
The Prime Minister knew that he and the HPSC were very, very hostile towards each other. It's just that until today he didn't realize that HPSC were the bad guys in this. Before Hawks started unleashing his revelations upon the world he saw it as a personal feud between a famous hero school' principal and a legitimate agency of the government. One that didn't end only because Nedzu made sure to never go against the law.
"Sir Nighteye mailed you a document a few minutes ago." Endeavor continues. Sir Nighteye was in on this as well? Well, considering the bit with All Might also supposedly being involved it made sense, but… "I need you to print it, sign it and then fax it back to him."
The Prime Minister quickly opens up his inbox. There it is. He doesn't have time to read it, but Endeavor knows that.
"It's going to legally designate HPSC as a villainous organization, allowing me and other heroes to step in." The Number One Hero adds. "It's time to clean up the house, and we need Top Heroes present when that happens if we want to regain the public's trust."
It was by all intents and purposes an internal coup, the Prime Minister realizes. And a very well planned one. Heroes versus the HPSC. The same HPSC that almost certainly was just publically murdered by Hawks.
Trying to save it wasn't an option. If half of what he just heard was the truth, the Prime Minister wouldn't even want to try - both on a moral basis and because it was a political suicide of biblical proportions. The only reason why rioters weren't yet storming the HPSC facilities in order to lynch its workers was because everything was happening too fast for them to organize.
It was now time for damage control. If it was truly planned ahead and if Sir Nighteye was involved…
"Fine." The Prime Minister says. Time to do a leap of faith. Who else can he believe in, now that HPSC betrayed them all, if not in the present Number One Hero and the former sidekick of the Symbol of Peace? "You'll have the document in a minute."
(***)
Now
"What conspiracy to overthrow the government?!" One of the Paragons shouts. "Are you all insane?! You can't be serious about…"
"Yes, that was certainly no plot against the government." Sir Nighteye replies calmly. "The HPSC president was merely organizing her own private army, while sending assassins to eliminate her political opponents, as a form of a hobby. She just forgot to mention all of that to the democratically elected government of Japan. I'm sure that once she and the Prime Minister sit down and explain the misunderstanding she'll be allowed to continue on with her hobby. In the meantime, however, I'm going to demand you to stand down. This is your last warning."
"Ignore it!" Miruko shouts cheerfully while cracking her knuckles. "Go ahead, make my day! I'm really looking forward to beating y'all fuckers up."
That was VERY intimidating. Especially considering the fact that a solid half of Paragons and HPSC-aligned heroes in the room looked like they were barely able to stand straight. The Vigilantes, Levellers and the Hero Killer gave them one hell of a fight.
Miruko was probably regretting the fact that she wasn't there for it. She was just that type of a person.
The Paragons clearly realized that they were outmatched. Especially with most of the Top Heroes in front of them, clearly waiting for a pretext to start violence. Especially with Yoroi Muusha and Scream being out of commission. Valiant and Foresight were pretty much the Top Heroes in terms of combat strength, but the former was marbled and the latter still on his knees.
Foresight made no indication of wanting to move from that position. At least for as long as Mischief was there.
"What about them?" One of the Paragons decided to clarify something, his finger pointing towards the vigilantes and their allies.
"Compress." Sir Nighteye asks. He sounds almost resigned. "Am I supposed to believe that you have no foolproof escape plan on the ready?" The fact that Mischief, Gentle Criminal, Ms. Compress and the Hero Killer moved closer to the no-longer dazed master thief was vaguely concerning.
"Hah, you know me so well!" Mr. Compress shouts back. In a split second his entire group is marbled. Non appears out of nowhere, grabs the marble, makes a light bow towards the heroes and Paragons, and then vanishes again.
"Oh gods." Edgeshot sighs. "Catching them is going to be even harder now that they have a disappearing quirk, isn't it?"
"We'll work on that, starting tomorrow." Sir Nighteye replies. He doesn't look happy about it either. "Knuckleduster?" The vigilantes stayed behind. Knowing Compress, the Levellers were still around, ready to give them a lift if things were to proceed in a wrong direction.
"What are we looking forward to?" The former Number Nine Hero and the leader of the Vigilante Alliance asks. Cameras and microphones pick it up, of course. It was staged.
"I believe that the Prime Minister said something about a potential amnesty for all the crimes committed as a part of your war against the HPSC." Sir Nighteye replies. "And retrials for whatever crimes you supposedly committed that made you turn against it. Those of you that didn't kill anyone will be allowed to, depending on your age and on whether you were former pro-heroes or not, attend hero schools or attempt hero license exams."
There are some gasps in the audience, mainly from the Paragons. But not only. Crawler is staring at Sir Nighteye in shock. Even Knuckleduster's eyes shot wide. They knew that Endeavor was going to try getting them an amnesty and retrials, but this part…
They weren't told. It was going to make their reactions more natural.
"You, after all, proved to have both skills and moral spine." Sir Nighteye continues. "And we're going to need more pro-heroes to replace those that are going to have their careers abruptly ended."
It's rather obvious who he was referring to. Especially the Paragons gathered in the lobby seem to realize it.
"That's…" Knuckleduster replies after a few seconds. "... sounds like an awfully large pile of maybes. Especially when it starts with 'I believe'." True, true. Trust an old fox like O'Clock to suspect something fishy going on. But Sir Nighteye wasn't finished.
"If those promises won't be satisfyingly fulfilled…" Sir Nighteye replies. "...me and every single Top Hero that accompanied me to this building will give up their hero licenses and retire."
This time, there are very few shocked gasps. What he gets instead are shocked stares.
"That's decent enough insurance, I guess." Knuckleduster sighs before raising his hands up. "And probably the most that I can expect from you. The Vigilante Alliance surrenders."
(***)
"Looks like it's over downstairs." Hawks asks after checking his phone for the last time. "I think it's time to wrap it up." Endeavor should be almost here.
"Most likely, yes." Daikaku Miyagi agrees. With a certain degree of reservations, but… if Hawks says it's over, it probably is. "What are you going to do now?"
"What I came here to do." Hawks replies, standing up from the couch. "That camera's the right one, yeah?" He says while pointing at the camera behind which the station director was standing. When given a nod, he takes a deep breath before making a deep bow.
"I apologize." He says, his head still down. "Both the people of Japan in general and, especially, those of you that were my fans. I failed you all. I know that I can't expect forgiveness after all I've done. Coming forward with the truth is the best thing that I could do to start making up for what I did. Cooperating with the police and accepting whatever punishment will be decided for me are going to be the next step of that."
Endeavor is here, together with some cat-headed police officer. He and the station director exchange some words. The newly arrived duo are clearly waiting for Hawks to finish.
Hawks raises his head, his eyes briefly jumping to Endeavor. There is something of a flash of pain on his face before he steels himself to continue.
"I know that I have no right to ask you for anything." Hawks says. "But please do not lose faith in the heroes. The HPSC spent at least a few decades trying to corrupt them, but even after all that time and with all their power and influence, they failed. Only a small minority of heroes fell for it, and most of them had to be groomed from childhood to turn a blind eye to what the Hero Commission was doing. Most of the heroes I know are good people worth your trust. I just wish that I was one of them."
He adds the last sentence after a second long pause. Endeavor decides that it's the time to end it. So he steps into the view of cameras, followed by the police officer that All Might said was trustworthy enough to do the job.
Endeavor doesn't say anything as the police officer makes the arrest. Hawks doesn't resist, it's all part of the plan. He knew it all along. Considering what Keigo Takami just admitted to doing, they don't really have an alternative.
He was a murderer. Yes, he was also a victim, brainwashed, manipulated and treated as a slave. But still a murderer. Deciding how to deal with him is something that was going to be left to the court, not to the heroes and police officers that arrived at the scene.
Somehow Endeavor can't help but believe that considering that Hawks decided to whistleblow on the whole affair despite it requiring him to confess to twenty-two murders, the sentence was going to be reduced. By a lot. Maybe - depending on how much dirt the government investigators were going to find on the HPSC - entirely. But for now… he was a criminal.
"I'm sorry." Hawks says suddenly towards Endeavor, the cuffs already on his hands. They are still in front of the cameras, and that part wasn't scripted.
"For?" Endeavor asks. Hawks has a lot to be sorry for, but…
"For not becoming a hero like you." Hawks replies, his eyes on the floor.
Ah.
(***)
Weeks Earlier
As Rei hugs Touya with tears streaming off her face, Endeavor finds himself… numb. Shocked. Terrified, maybe? He has no idea what to do. How do you react to something like that? How do you react to your son - whose death was your biggest regret in life - suddenly showing up from nowhere?
Smaller, clearly confused at his parents growing waaay older, but… it's him. Endeavor can't believe it. A miracle that he is sure that he doesn't deserve. Rei certainly does, but he…
"He had that on him." Burnin seems to share most of his emotions, except to a lesser degree.
His most important sidekick hands him a letter. Endeavor (too terrified to just come and hug his son, the one that he all but killed) opens it up, his hands shaking.
"Dear Endeavor," He reads. "I know that this is unexpected, and that you have all the reasons to suspect that this is some sort of plot. That the boy in front of you isn't your long-lost son. You're a Top Hero, so of course you are suspicious. I, however, assure you that this isn't the case. The boy that carried this letter to you is, in fact, Touya Todoroki. Your firstborn son. Unfortunately, he is also Dabi, the Arch-Arsonist."
What?
"He survived that fire. He dedicated himself to taking revenge on you and your entire family. He spent years preparing it. He dreamt of the moment when he would tell you the truth in front of the cameras. Before killing your 'masterpiece' in front of you - and then ending you. I can't know it for sure, but I'm almost certain that he planned to kill the rest of your family, preferably before the two of you, just to make you suffer more."
The shaking grows in intensity. There is not only confusion and shock but also horror and anger. Mostly at himself. But then came the words most unexpected.
"Dabi, the Arch-Arsonist, is dead. I killed him. The quirk that was used on him returned him to what he used to be when he was six years old. His memories are gone. More than gone - for him, they never happened in the first place. No quirk out there can change that. Seeing photos of his old self will not mysteriously make him remember, because there is nothing for him to remember. For Dabi, I assure you, it was a fate worse than death."
He can imagine that. Especially if whoever was responsible for this told him that he was going to be returned to his family. For Dabi it had to be…
"But I didn't do that to punish him. I did that because I know that you've realized what you've done wrong. That you're trying to make amends. Monsters don't make amends. Monsters don't regret what they've done. Dabi was a monster, but you, I believe, aren't one. Letting him destroy you and your family wouldn't be particularly heroic, now would I? So instead, I've decided to give you a second chance. Don't waste it.
Sincerely, your newest fan."
It's at this point that the dam breaks. For the first time in her life, Burnin gets to see Endeavor crying.
(***)
Now
Hawks doesn't know. He doesn't know the sort of things Endeavor has done to his own family. All he sees in front of him is the Number One Hero. The symbol of all that the Heroics should stand for.
Is that why All Might was so happy to stop being the Symbol of Peace, to stop being the Number One Hero? Because being at the top meant having to spend years, if not decades pretending to be something that you weren't for the greater good? Because he was tired of people looking up at him as a perfect man, completely unaware of the person underneath the facade? Of the person that spend most of that time trying to find and brutally murder a villain that killed his mentor?
What would the people think if they knew about that? What would the people think if they knew the truth about Endeavor's past behavior? What would the people think of the pro-heroes if the Number One among them turned out to not be as perfect as they thought?
Endeavor spent years being one of the Top Heroes. Fighting crime, defeating villains. He already realized that being a Number One Hero was something different than this, but it wasn't until this moment that he realized how much it was different.
He doesn't have an ounce of All Might's charisma. He isn't sure if he can be uplifting when needed. Probably not. But he's here. And he has a job to do.
"It doesn't change what you've done." Endeavor replies. "Nothing can. But today you were a better hero than I ever was."
He isn't sure if the words he said are correct. At least until Hawks breaks into tears. Cameras and microphones, naturally, picked up the whole exchange.
(***)
The epilogue of the events in the TV station comes when the elevator reaches the lobby. The cameras placed there are still active, but Hawks didn't get to see what was happening there once the vigilantes and Paragons were all removed from the spot.
They didn't mention that to him beforehand. Mostly because they wanted his reaction to look as natural as possible.
When the elevator doors open, Hawks finds himself facing not just the few of the Top Heroes (plus Sir Nighteye) that came with Endeavor. There is a straight road from the elevator exit to the entrance, behind which an armored police car is waiting.
On both sides of the road, are heroes. Hawks recognizes most of them as various heroes from the Top Hundred, all in their uniforms. Pussycats are there. Fat Gum is there. For some reason, even Ingenium is there. Hawks expected a look of revulsion or anger from him, but he got none.
"We've ended up getting whoever we could." Endeavor adds. "To make sure that no one from the Commission gets any funny ideas." And to remind the country (the cameras were still on) that most of the heroes were against the Commission.
Hawks briefly wonders how many phone calls Nedzu had to make to get them all here. Without telling them what was going to happen. They were probably all watching the TV in a nearby building until the time came for them to show up.
Then he realizes that it no longer matters. The war between Nedzu and the HPSC president was over.
(***)
Chaos Madness and Arson Inc. Chatroom
HornedRat: I must say that I'm incredibly impressed with you right now, Young Midoriya.
HornedRat: I believe that announcing that you've officially graduated from our special lessons is the least I can do.
HornedRat: You're still expected to show up to them, because there is still a lot for you to learn, but there is no point in organizing any graduation exam for you after this.
SmallMight: uhm
HornedRat: But please do not mention that to your father. I believe I promised him to not make overthrowing Japanese government into your graduation exam. And this was dangerously close to that.
HornedRat: Even if I'm sure that All Might is extremely proud of you for what you've done.
SmallMight: well I
SmallMight: Sir Nighteye helped me a lot, he planned most of it tbh
SmallMight: it was my general idea yes and I helped get the vigilantes and levellers aboard
SmallMight: but without his quirk telling us that things were going to work we would never risk it
SmallMight: so, like
HornedRat: Midoriya.
HornedRat: You've completely and utterly destroyed the HPSC in a span of what? fifteen minutes?
HornedRat: You could have only given Sir Nighteye a rough idea for the plan and I'd still react that way.
SmallMight: you would?
HornedRat: Yes.
HornedRat: I admit it was an… unorthodox approach to the issue. Finding out about Hawks' past through the Vigilante Alliance investigation wasn't exactly your work, but the idea of how to proceed with that knowledge was.
HornedRat: Sir Nighteye and I would probably attempt to blackmail him into leaking intel to us. What you suggested was… as I said, unorthodox. I think I've grown a bit too bitter and 'grounded' to consider appealing to someone's better nature. And the public.
HornedRat: What made you consider that?
SmallMight: The recording of the attack on Ingenium. It showed him trying to dodge at the last minute.
SmallMight: I made a small reconstruction and asked uncle Stain for his expertise in stab wounds and human anatomy.
SmallMight: We've realized that Hawks was trying to NOT kill or maim Ingenium.
HornedRat: Ah
HornedRat: The HPSC had no reason to order anything other than straight assassination, because that was guaranteed to hurt Stain's agenda the most.
SmallMight: Yes!
SmallMight: This meant that Hawks had, despite everything that happened, doubts.
SmallMight: Why did she even used someone so high in the ranking for assassination? It wouldn't work with anyone else, without this degree of popularity. They would manage to portray it as a work of a madman or PLF's set-up otherwise. I still don't get it.
HornedRat: My educated guess, coming from someone that knew her for years, is that having someone as important and famous as her attack dog was soothing to her overinflated ego.
HornedRat: There are lessons to be learned from that, Young Midoriya.
HornedRat: Pride comes before fall. Mixing business with pleasure is a suicide. Make sure that your private assassins aren't among the most popular people in the country, even if you're absolutely sure of their loyalty. This sort of trivialities.
SmallMight: I guess.
(***)
"This plan of theirs…" The Prime Minister announces. "... was brilliant, let me tell you that much."
He is still in his office, together with his minister of the interior affairs. The day is almost over. The fighting out there has almost ended as well.
Most of the HPSC was too shocked and stunned to try anything funny. But some facilities decided that the transmission was some villain plot. It ended up with several de facto sieges by police and heroes, most of them over by now.
Also a few minor skirmishes. One regular but brief battle (because of course that bitch had several Paragons as bodyguards and refused to get arrested - not like it worked out for her). A handful of protests and general chaos. Nothing worth mentioning.
"Isn't that…" The minister asks, clearly dumbfounded by the development. "... your celebratory sake?" Yes, drinking after one of the biggest political crises in the history of Japan (at this point the entire world knew, it broke headlines everywhere from Buenos Aires to Vladivostok) seemed odd, but…
"You still don't understand, do you?" The Prime Minister chuckles, seeing his confused face. "The HPSC turned out to be a cancer that was slowly killing this country for decades. And it was just excised - in the possibly least harmful way to the organism that I can think of."
"That's the least harmful way?" The minister asks back, his brow raised. "I can't even begin to imagine the impact that it'll have on the government's popularity and the approval of the pro-heroes as a system and…" The Prime Minister silences him with a wave of his hand.
"Think about it." He leans forward over the desk. "The HPSC' downfall could happen in a million different ways. 99% of them would end with a massive hit in the people's faith in the system. But here, whoever planned the operation, did their best to lessen the impact."
He raises a finger.
"Point one." He says. "The corruption wasn't exposed by someone from the outside. It wasn't the police that found out the truth. It wasn't some intrepid journalist. It was someone from the inside. The highest and most popular of the corrupted heroes that willingly came forward, the one person whose corruption being exposed would hurt us the most. And that's not all."
"Not all?"
"Because the one that came forward…" The Prime Minister sighs. "... felt like a victim more than anything else. Sure, his fans are heartbroken but most of them do not see their idol as a monster that was pretending to be a hero. They saw a victim of many horrible things that still had enough moral courage to speak out, despite knowing what it meant for him. So while he no longer has fans, most of them transitioned not into haters of him and the heroes as a whole but into people demanding that the HPSC should be burned to the ground for what they did to him. Hell, there is a petition with a few hundred thousand signatures already asking us to pardon Hawks."
Hawks was never again going to be a hero, that much was certain. Not with this amount of blood on his hands. But an amnesty… it depended on many factors. Such as what was going to be the popular opinion on the issue once the situation stabilizes.
And on whether Hawks will apply for it. According to Endeavor there was a fair chance that he wouldn't take it (so they could only try to lower his punishment sufficiently).
"Point two." The Prime Minister continues while raising another finger. "The people that did most of the footwork were vigilantes. This is actually good for several reasons. If we go with what I promised Endeavor and let a lot if not most of them become heroes… we're going to PUBLICALLY replace most of the corrupted heroes with people that preferred being hunted as villains sometimes for DECADES to bending before corruption."
The interior minister's eyes widened. Yes. He now understands the result of that. The moral legitimacy of the hero system that might have been irreversibly lost was damaged… but if they played it correctly, it could actually come out stronger than ever.
"What's more…." The Prime Minister continues. "Where is the PLF's support the strongest?"
"The poorer districts." Interior minister replied immediately. "The ones populated mostly by the quirkless, mutants and villain quirk holders. The areas that never fully recovered from the chaos after the Dawn of Q…" Oh, the sudden look of shock on his face tells the Prime Minister everything.
"The very same places…" He replies. "... where the vigilantes were seen as the true heroes. Where pro-heroes were rarely seen and never depended upon in times of trouble, typically seen as a bunch of stuck-up buffoons in for money. The places that we failed at helping for decades because the locals refused to trust us enough to receive our help. What did they all get to see and hear today?"
The top pro-heroes announcing openly that they would turn in their licenses if the vigilantes weren't treated with proper respect. The former Number One Hero threatening the former Number Three Hero with bloody murder for attacking a 'villain quirked' kids - convincingly enough for the latter to resign from service immediately. The Top Pro-Heroes arriving alongside the sidekick of that very man, who was clearly in charge of the whole operation.
And if the vigilantes were to become pro-heroes… where would they operate? Would they move to some more glamorous places or would they stay in those poor and neglected districts and towns that they came from? Making it so that for the first time in years - if not decades - their inhabitants would look to the pro-heroes for help? And through them, the government?
Not to mention the government now having a perfect scapegoat. The past attempts to help those places failing? The discriminatory policies in the heroic industry? It was all HPSC's fault, people! We're now going to do our best to fix that, please help us in that.
Shitting on the HPSC was soon going to become the national pastime.
"And then, point three, the last scene." The Prime Minister continues. "Most of the higher ranked heroes were there. Arriving at the scene so quickly that a lot of people are going to assume that they all knew of it beforehand. That the Top Heroes and Vigilante Alliance were working together all along to clean up the house, to quote Endeavor. Proving that the system isn't hopeless, as hopeless systems do not cleanse themselves of corruption without external influences. And with how quickly the Prime Minister's office acted, a lot of people are going to assume that we were a part of it, but decided to play it out that way because the HPSC was too strong to take it down conventionally. So we had to rouse popular support for the purge."
It was a very good plan. The anti-HPSC faction didn't try to inform the prime minister beforehand because there was a risk of him not believing them and maybe even warning the HPSC. Instead, they had Hawks whistleblow on the whole affair - and then, when the Prime Minister was busy thinking about how to save himself and the government, Endeavor offered him a perfect way out. That just happened to be his full support for the coup.
The result was the fastest and smoothest coup d'etat (well, almost, HPSC was pretty much its own country at this point) that he ever heard about.
The Prime Minister sighs and leans back in his seat. He is… surprisingly content. Oh, the nearing months were going to be dangerous. Incredibly so, even with the PLF decimated during the Kamino Ward battle. The blow to the government's image was there, and nothing could change that. With HPSC out and the police still reeling from Hosu, they were left more vulnerable than ever.
But if they survive the coming months, if the PLF is destroyed… the possibilities that just opened were endless.
"And that's why I drink my celebratory sake, old friend." He adds, before looking at the interior minister. "Because the country was nearly mortally wounded by the Dawn of Quirks… and maybe, just maybe, it'll finally begin to heal. So, do you want some too?"
"Yeah." The man replies. "Now I want some too. Also, whoever planned all of that was a fucking genius." The Prime Minister can't help but agree.
(***)
Midoriya pulls back a little before sneezing loudly. Was someone talking about him? But who could it b…
Uraraka doesn't let him continue thinking about it and pulls him back in. Oh, right. That was a rather… intense make-out session. Was all that enthusiasm due to the whole 'made a plan for MR. COMPRESS biggest heist ever' bit, or the 'destroyed the HPSC' bit (she hated it as well at this point, she heard enough stories from her boyfriend and his family members) or…
Nevermind, he's going to leave thinking for later. He has a LOT of enthusiasm himself.
(***)
"I'm going to say words that were never spoken before… and will never be spoken again." Yagi Toshinori announces. He is alone on the couch with Inko. The REAL Inko. The Twice clone that helped take down the HPSC was long gone.
Inko really wanted to help, but she was, after all, pregnant. They were waiting with the reveal until Izuku was going to notice what was happening. They had a bet in place for how many months it was going to take him. For all his smarts, he was sometimes… rather… uhm… himself.
"Yes?" Inko asks, looking at him questioningly.
"You beating up some HPSC lackeys on live television…" Yagi Toshinori says to his wife. "... and then using Mr. Compress as a living projectile against Yoroi Muusha was probably the hottest thing I ever saw in my life."
(***)
Between the two of us, I'm 100% certain that Nedzu, Sir Nighteye and Midoriya didn't plan for the whole 'heal the country'. They are good, but they are not THAT good. Their calculations were more about 'we're going to need more heroes to replace those that we're going to lose in a moment', with a pinch of 'this might weaken support for the PLF in those districts, leaving us less vulnerable during the transition phase'.
In the end, not a single one of them is a politician... and it looks that while the Prime Minister did let the HPSC do a lot of things behind his back, he is a man in the right place. Where it will lead us? Time (and more chapters) will tell. For now, except a few chapters of the aftermath... and then, after some fluff, we're starting the next battle arc, provisionally titled Innocence Lost (I just finished writing it, btw.).
[as for how did Izuku go with Uraraka - trust me, they are minors that needed two digit number of dates to kiss, they get less far than you think and even that will be answered in a few chapters ;v]