Chapter 9: To Accept the Challenge
Despite his initial reluctance, Aizawa worked seamlessly having an intern. Though Hitoshi had expected this; from what he's seen and heard from Midoriya, the underground hero was an amazing teacher. In some aspects, he could even hold a candle to Korosensei. He wasn't exactly the 'slow-down-and-explain-it' type, but Hitoshi was used to that. He learned 90% of Bitch-sensei's techniques by her using them on him first.
This meant that Aizawa didn't waste any time getting into the real work. On the first day, he and Hitoshi went down to the police station to meet with the lead detective for the USJ case.
"Since when did you have sidekicks?" Naomasa greeted, eyeing Hitoshi skeptically. He was changed into his hero costume, the metal mask resting loosely around his neck. Aizawa seemed unimpressed when he first saw the costume, but he became more accepting when he learned it could change colors to all black.
"I don't," replied Aizawa. "This is Zugzwang. He's here to provide us with intel."
"I'm his intern," Hitoshi supplied helpfully. Aizawa glared.
Naomasa nodded and shook Hitoshi's hand. "Didn't you win the Sports Festival?"
"I did. And to answer your next question, yes, I am in END." He answered bluntly, and Aizawa sighed. Naomasa led them back to his office, where a blond, disturbingly sunken-in man was sitting. It was quick, but when he saw Hitoshi, the brainwasher could see the alarm in his eyes. His eyes narrowed. Who was this guy?
...and why did he look familiar?
Aizawa's frown deepened upon seeing the blond stranger but he took a seat next to the man nonetheless. Hitoshi sat next to his mentor much more cautiously, keeping an eye on the blond man the whole time. Naomasa took a seat across from them at his desk. "Eraserhead, Zugzwang, this is Yagi Toshinori. He's a...consultant for this case."
Yagi nodded his head politely. Aizawa rolled his eyes and Hitoshi's suspicion grew.
Naomasa pulled out the case files, explaining what the police knew so far about the attack and the Nomu, which wasn't anything new from Hitoshi's previous knowledge.
"There wasn't much of the beast left after the attack, but we were able to gather enough DNA samples to run an analysis of it." He pulled out a mugshot of a man with disturbingly large lips. "The DNA matched a human criminal who, according to our records, doesn't have a quirk that lets him turn into a giant monster. However, we did find a surprising substance infused in the man's DNA."
"Anti-matter," Hitoshi mumbled, already knowing the answer. Naomasa blinked and nodded slowly.
"Yes...has END already run the DNA tests, too?"
Hitoshi smirked. "Yes, but we didn't need to." He pulled out the green anti-sensei knife he kept in his utility belt. "This weapon was what destroyed the USJ Nomu, and it only harms beings made of anti-matter. That, and this wasn't our first run in with a beast called 'Nomu.'"
"The creature that attacked the mountain?" Aizawa supplied, and Hitoshi could see the wheels turning in his head. Hitoshi nodded.
"Yes. The Reaper was the final form of the Nomu — the perfected weapon. Korosensei was technically the first Nomu, but a botched and incomplete prototype."
"If I'm following you correctly, wasn't the creator of the Tentacle and the other creature killed the night of the mountain raid?" Yagi asked. "How is it possible that there's still Nomus running around? And how did this 'League of Villains' get their hands on one?"
There was no way this guy was some random 'consultant.' What happened during the mountain raid was a top government secret, confidential on a need-to-know basis. Was he involved in the government somehow? No, if he was, he'd be more up to date on END's discoveries.
Hitoshi reached up to his glasses, making it look like he was adjusting them. He pressed the button to start scanning Yagi's face so Ritsu could pull up his information.
"END suspects an apprentice or successor of Yanagisawa is creating and giving them to the League," he supplied as his glasses got to work. "The Nomu at the USJ was a fraction as strong as Yanagisawa's perfected Nomu, which suggests whoever this is doesn't know his final formula. From what we've gathered, Nomus are created by injecting anti-matter and quirks into human subjects, turning them into near-invulnerable bio-weapons."
"But that Nomu was hardly invulnerable," Naomasa pointed out, and Hitoshi smirked.
"Far from it. Compared to Yanagisawa's Nomus, it was very lacking. It didn't have as many quirks, it could be harmed by normal attacks, it didn't have any tentacles, and it was unbelievably stupid. If this was baking, it was like the creator was trying to make a Nomu without a recipe."
His glasses pinged the information, and Hitoshi smothered his shock as he read up what the government had on this 'Yagi Toshinori.' It was...unexpecting, to say the least. The adults continued discussing the Nomu and the USJ attack and Hitoshi reeled from this bomb for information. Did Midoriya already know about this? He probably did, the little green punk. Naomasa and Aizawa probably knew too, judging their reactions earlier.
"Are these weapons the only way to defeat the Nomu?" Yagi asked, and Hitoshi redirected his brain to the conversation.
"It might be the only way to easily kill them, but I doubt it. The USJ Nomu showed some susceptibility to normal attacks, at the very least." He shrugged, twirling the knife between his fingers. "Normal attacks should at least incapacitate him. If you got to the USJ before END, All-Might, I'm sure you could've eventually smashed him into submission."
The room went silent. Yagi's beady eyes were blown wide and Naomasa's mouth hung open. Aizawa sunk into his seat with a sigh, reconsidering all of his life choices.
"Did...Did someone…" Yagi choked, and Hitoshi grinned spitefully.
"Tell me? Nope. Though you suggesting it means someone close to me must know about it. Lemme guess, Midoriya?" Yagi flinched, and that was all the answer Hitoshi needed. "If it makes you feel any better, All-Might, I wouldn't have known for sure if it wasn't for your U.A. hiring files."
"You went through my hiring files?"
"Nah, but Ritsu did." He held up his phone for reference, and the AI girl giggled and waved. Aizawa massaged his temples now.
This was going to be an amazing internship.
-.-.-.-
The mugger came out of the shadows, pulling a knife on the poor, unsuspecting couple. Aizawa held up his hand, telling Hitoshi to stay back while he silently descended the building.
"C'mon, I know you have more than that," the mugger nagged, holding the knife very close to the smaller woman's neck. The taller woman held her partner close.
"That's all the money we have, I swear. Please, just let us go."
"Hmm, I don't believe you—"
The wrist holding the knife suddenly became encased by the capture scarf. "You have five seconds to drop the weapon and give the money back to these women."
The mugger yelped and foolishly tried to pull his wrist free. Aizawa came out from the shadows and tugged the capture scarf, dragging the criminal with it.
"AH! Okay, okay, I'm doing it, I'm doing it!" He dropped the knife on the ground and Aizawa quickly kicked it away. The mugger scrambled to pull the money out, and that's when Hitoshi glasses notified him, pointing out the tiny detail no normal eye could catch.
Oh, bless Chiba's quirk.
The man pulled out the gun and aimed it at Aizawa's head, but before he could do more than that, Hitoshi's capture rings wrapped around the barrel of the gun and yanked it out of the mugger's hand.
"W-What-?"
Just for shits and giggles, Hitoshi turned his artificial voice chords on interrogation mode and jumped down from the building. The Korosensei-like smile glowed on the mask, illuminating his eyes, and the mugger cowered.
"That was a very stupid thing to do," he said, his voice dropped multiple octaves for effect. The mugger turned, visibly shaking, and that's when Aizawa reached out, knocking the criminal unconscious.
"Was that really necessary?" the Pro-Hero grumbled, handcuffing the villain and handing the money back to the women. Hitoshi turned off the mask and lowered it so Aizawa could see his actual shit-eating grin.
"Probably not, but it sure made it interesting."
For the 58th time that internship (Hitoshi has been counting), Aizawa sighed.
-.-.-.-
"Why do you use those?"
They were taking a break in training. Along with patrols, Aizawa had also taken over sparring with Hitoshi using the U.A. gyms. So far, Aizawa succeeded in winning every spar, but only by a very small margin. Hitoshi was close to beating him, he could feel it.
Hitoshi glanced over at his mentor and saw him pointedly staring at Hitoshi's capture rings. "These? I've had them for a while. I originally designed them myself, hoping they'd help with assassination, but then I just got used to them. Itona designed these ones, so they're a lot more reliable and high-tech."
Aizawa was still scowling. "But why rings? You have to use your hands, so they limit your range of combat. What do you do if you're subduing an enemy from afar and another villain tries to fight you hand-to-hand?"
Hitoshi shrugged. "Well, if I'm doing my job right, no one will get close enough to me to worry about that."
Aizawa sighed. 96th time.
-.-.-.-
"I really don't understand why you're making me be here."
His internship for Aizawa was turning out to be everything he could hope for and more. He got to work on and contribute to major cases outside of END, he got to cause Aizawa lots of stress, and he got to go on patrol every night so far. Thank goodness he was already an insomniac and could function on near-zero sleep. Only the strongest of people could work 22-hour days and live to tell the tale.
But there was one big downside to interning for his homeroom teacher. And it's that his homeroom teacher still has academic responsibilities even when his homeroom was out for the week.
Aizawa passed Hitoshi another graded essay (a 23? Ouch, sorry Ashido) to enter in the gradebook. "You're the one who wanted to follow me around and get experience as an underground hero. Well, this is part of my job."
Hitoshi figured that translated to 'this is what you get for being a cheeky little shit,' which, okay, fair.
Hitoshi sighed and entered in the next essay (Poofy got a 100 on an essay about hero ethics? How did that make sense?) He wondered how Midoriya was doing on his internship and contemplated messaging him, but he decided against it. Aizawa would probably kick him if he even reached for his phone.
The classroom door slammed open.
"Hey, Shouta, I was wondering if you knew — Shinsou?!"
Midnight stood at the doorway, holding a stack of papers. Hitoshi instantly evaluated his escape routes.
"Shinsou, you're on campus? And you haven't visited me yet?!" she pouted, hovering over the brainwasher.
"I literally saw you four days ago," Hitoshi grumbled, leaning backward. "And besides, I'm technically working for my internship right now."
Aizawa smirked, and Hitoshi prayed the man wouldn't say anything. Midnight didn't need to know that he was complaining about this work earlier.
"Oh, are you interning for Shouta? Makes sense; you're basically the same person."
Hitoshi and Aizawa both glared at the woman and deadpanned, "No, we're not."
Midnight's smile only grew.
-.-.-.-
Crazy Blonde Bitch
(12:42) Hey brat
(12:42) Pick up your phone, you have a mission
(12:46) This isn't an option
(12:58) Shitsou?
(13:00) I swear if you don't respond I'm going to come get you myself
(13:08) Ritsu is pinging your location right now!
(13:10) Really? You're at your stupid school?
(13:10) Since when aren't you on your phone in school? Are you ignoring me???
(13:26) See you in a little bit, you piece of shit
-.-.-.-
They were just finishing up grading the essays (it ended up taking way longer than necessary thanks to Midnight's constant commentary on Aizawa's grading style) when the door slammed open again and a high heel went flying through the air, nailing Hitoshi in the back of the head.
"There you are! Don't you look at your damn phone?!"
No. This wasn't happening. "B-Bitch-sensei? What the hell?"
The blonde assassin stood at the door, her other heel clutched in her hand and pointed at the brainwasher. She looked absolutely murderous, but that still didn't explain why she was at his school.
"Shinsou," Aizawa said, placing a hand on Hitoshi's shoulder. His voice was quiet, cold and dangerous, and his eyes glowed red. "Do you know this woman?"
Midnight was already pulling at her sleeve, ready to release her quirk. Hitoshi knew he needed to act fast if he wanted to prevent an all-out brawl between his teachers.
"Yes," he grumbled, glaring at the blonde woman. "She's my old English teacher."
The U.A. teachers lowered their defenses (though Aizawa didn't deactivate his quirk). Bitch-sensei crossed her arms and scoffed.
"Oh, I was a lot more than just his English teacher. But we don't have time for that, Shitsou, because we have a mission."
"Mission?" Hitoshi echoed while Aizawa muttered, "Shitsou?" he sounded way too amused by that nickname.
"Yup, a mission, so let's go."
And suddenly he was being dragged across the classroom by his ear, Bitch-sensei's nails digging into his cartilage hard enough to pierce it. He hissed and tried to pry the fingers off, but it was ultimately Midnight and Aizawa that saved him. They blocked Bitch-sensei's exit and looked ready to fight again.
"You're not going anywhere until you explain who the hell you are and why you're here. Thoroughly," Aizawa growled, his red eyes very intimidating. Bitch-sensei tsked and let go of Hitoshi's ear so she could lean against a desk.
"My name is Irina Jelavić. I'm a special agent for the Ministry of Defense, and until a few months ago, I was the number one honeypot assassin in the world. Like Shinsou said, I was his English teacher in 3-E. Now, as for why I'm here, the ministry has authorized me to form a reconnaissance team to look into the location of the two villains behind the USJ attacks. And I'm recruiting Shinsou for the team."
Why me? Hitoshi mentally bemoaned. It seemed he and Aizawa were on the same wavelength, however, because he asked, "And why Shinsou?"
Bitch-sensei smirked. "Because back in 3-E, Shitsou was my protégé, so there's no one I know better."
Very slowly, the two U.A. teachers turned to face Hitoshi. The brainwasher resisted the urge to slam his head against the wall.
"Pro-té-gé…?" Midnight articulated. "No, no, you must be mistaken. There's no way Shinsou would seek mentorship from someone like you."
"I didn't," Hitoshi grumbled, thinking back to when the woman showed up at his damn house. Neither woman paid him any mind.
"Excuse me?" Bitch-sensei bristled, and Midnight smirked.
"Granted, if that's really the case, it makes sense why Shinsou would come here so he could be guided by a real woman." Midnight very pointedly pushed her chest forward, her boobs nearly knocking into Bitch-sensei. Hitoshi suppressed a scream while the blonde assassin's jaw dropped.
"Real...I am a real woman, you bitch! My boobs are just as real as yours!"
"Hmm, even if that's true, mine are still bigger."
"No they're not!"
Hitoshi shuffled so he stood shoulder-to-shoulder with a deadpanned Aizawa. "Can we please leave for patrol now?"
It was mid-afternoon, but Aizawa didn't hesitate. "Grab your suit."
They succeeded in sneaking out of the classroom. They were walking through the U.A. courtyard, Hitoshi lamenting his woes to Midoriya via text. Aizawa side-eyed him suspiciously.
"So, honeypot assassin, huh?"
Hitoshi flushed and refused to meet his teacher's eyes. "Those were dark times, okay? I did what I could to survive."
Aizawa huffed, something akin to a laugh, and Hitoshi wished he'd go back to sighing. This really couldn't get any more embarrassing.
"Shitsou, get back here!"
Or maybe it could.
Bitch-sensei was sprinting across the courtyard while simultaneously cat-fighting with Midnight. She could move frighteningly fast for a woman in heels, but granted, Hitoshi was taught by her to do the same, so…
Hitoshi cursed and started to run. He barely turned the corner before he was cut off again.
"C'mon, Shinsou, you can't bail on us now," taunted Maehara. Yada beamed and giggled, "It's a honeypot bonding experience! You can't miss out on it!"
"I can and I will." He turned around, planning on just out-running Bitch-sensei, but he was cut off by Nagisa. The annoying blue ninja must've used his quirk to conceal his presence and sneak up on them. How are they even getting in here? Isn't U.A. supposed to be a secure campus? ...but then again, Grip of all people broke in. Maybe he should put in a word to Nedzu about security because their current system clearly wasn't working.
"Sorry, Shinsou," Nagisa said, and at least he actually looked apologetic. Granted Nagisa technically wasn't a part of Bitch-sensei's 'Honeypot Trio,' which means he was probably dragged into this mission as well.
Bitch-sensei finally caught up to them, yelling curses and promises to make Hitoshi pay. Aizawa watched the exchange with bored eyes before finally interrupting. "You said this mission was to hunt down the villains from the USJ, right?" Bitch-sensei hummed in affirmation, and Aizawa's frown deepened. "Then why are you trying to get Shinsou involved? He's a U.A. student — one of their targets. Shouldn't we focus on keeping him far, far away from the villains trying to hurt him?"
Bitch-sensei paused, reevaluating the Pro-Hero. "Your concern is valid, but the sad reality is that probably every villain is gunning after Shinsou or his classmates, both old and new. And that's not going to change by wrapping them in bubble wrap and locking them in a closet."
Midnight frowned and stopped attacking the blonde woman. "Yes, but keeping them safe while the Pros handle it—"
"Teaches them nothing," deadpanned Bitch-sensei. "Call it the cynical reality of being an assassin, but in this world, everyone is a target. If you want to survive, you have to take the people after you out first."
The U.A teachers were silent, and Hitoshi decided enough was enough. Sighing, he handed the case containing his hero costume over to Aizawa and accepted his reality. "It's better to just get this over with. I'll be back tomorrow and ready to finally kick your ass in training."
"Language," grumbled Aizawa, as if that was the most important thing here, and Hitoshi smothered a laugh. The teacher turned and glared at Bitch-sensei with glowing red eyes. "You better keep him safe."
Bitch-sensei smiled. It was sad, reminiscent, and full of regret. "I will."
-.-.-.-
They gathered back at the END headquarters for the mission debriefing. It was the first formal mission debrief Hitoshi has attended — Sigma never gets assigned missions, and there wasn't time for a debrief with the USJ attack. He browsed through the files.
"The police interrogated all of the criminals from the USJ attack," Karasuma explained. "They're all low-life thugs, street-villains for hire. Claimed they heard from friends and contacts that some big shots were planning on taking out All-Might and decided they wanted in on the glory. None of them had even seen the two masterminds before the day of the attack."
"So I take it we're looking for the middle man?" asked Maehara, and their ex-teachers nodded.
"Most of the villains claimed they were recruited in the underground bars and fighting rings that criminals like to congregate in," Bitch-sensei said. "There appears to be three major areas, which will be our points of infiltration. We'll have to split up — I'll go alone to the Mudai Fighting Club. The other two places are sister bars in the Yokohama ward of Kouhoku; Nagisa and Shinsou will go to Nijiro, and Maehara and Yada will infiltrate Iseiro. If you find a middle-man, arrest him and bring him in for interrogation immediately."
Hitoshi took one glance at the club name and his mission partner and scowled. "This is a gay bar, isn't it?"
Bitch-sensei grinned wickedly. "Well, we wouldn't want you feeling uncomfortable, Shitsou."
Ten minutes later, Hitoshi was given his mission disguise, and he felt very uncomfortable.
"How is it possible to cover so much skin and leave you still feeling naked?" Hitoshi marveled. As much as he hated his life right now, he had to admire Bitch-sensei's handiwork. She managed to perfectly cover up all of his scars while still making him look promiscuous. He was shoved into a long-sleeved crop top that showed the small area of his torso and abs that the Reaper didn't scar. The high waisted denim shorts barely fell mid-thigh, but the rest of his legs were covered by micro-fishnet tights that he wanted to burn. He was (unsurprisingly) shoved into a pair of stilettos with actual knives for the heel, and his wild purple hair was tamed down, the fringe falling in his eyes. He was just grateful the makeup was limited to concealer for his eyebags, mascara, and eyeliner.
It could be worse. He could be shoved in a dress like Nagisa. Or — heaven forbid — forced to do drag again.
'Queer Party Boy Look' Bitch-sensei had called it. 'Bane of my existence, thank Korosensei that Aizawa and Midnight aren't here to see this' seemed more appropriate.
-.-.-.-
It was embarrassingly easy to sneak into the bar, and from there, he and Nagisa started feeling out the people. They talked, flirted, and manipulated their way through every conversation, but so far all they were finding was an abundance of useless thugs. No middle man.
He stood at the bar, pretending to nurse some alcoholic drink that was bluer than Nagisa's hair and listening in on the conversations around him. Nothing exciting, just a bunch of stupid villains talking about the times they've evaded arrest or bragging about the strongest hero they've fought. Was that the villain equivalent for comparing dick sizes?
"Does that drink not fit your tastes?"
Hitoshi suppressed the urge to flinch and very calmly turned to face the man next to him. He was older, probably mid-30s, with burnt orange skin and bright red hair. He looked like a walking clown.
"Never been one for alcohol," Hitoshi said, eyeing the newcomer. The man grinned.
"You've probably just never tried the right drink. Here, allow me to order you something better." He signaled the barkeeper, who nodded. The man turned back to Hitoshi, leaning in way too close for comfort. "So, what brings a pretty face like yours to a seedy place like this?"
At least he's self-aware, Hitoshi mused. He gave a practiced smile. "I heard this was the go-to place to get recruited for jobs."
"Oh?" the man echoed.
"Yeah. In fact, I heard this is one of the places that League of Villains — you know, the ones who attacked those hero students? — recruits from." He leaned in coyly. "You wouldn't happen to know who I could talk to about that, would you?"
The man grinned. "As a matter of fact, I do." Hitoshi perked up, and the man leaned in, his mouth next to his ear. "But I'm not quite sure I should be telling END agents about it. Not without a little...compensation."
Hitoshi tensed and gritted his teeth. Damn disguise wasn't good enough apparently; maybe he really should've gone for the drag look.
The brainwasher tapped his Ritsu-watch to alert Nagisa they've been compromised, and blinked when he got no response. The man grinned and, faster than Hitoshi expected, grabbed the agent's wrist and pulled it so it was eye level.
"Don't go wasting your time with that. I've already guaranteed our privacy that way." EMP quirk, then. Just great. "Though something tells me we're still not alone. Let's take a walk, huh? Somewhere a bit more private."
Hitoshi was tempted to just brainwash the man and walk away, but he hesitated. This man had information they desperately needed, and he seemed willing to offer it up if Hitoshi complied. While every bone in his body screamed, this was exactly the type of situation a honeypot was trained for. He knew what he needed to do.
The drink arrived, and Hitoshi grabbed it with his free hand. He tilted his head, his bangs falling into his eyes, and played with the straw with his tongue. "Lead the way."
The man grinned and wrapped a muscular arm around Hitoshi's waist, leading them out of the bar. With Hitoshi's wrist now freed, his hand shot to the knife strapped to his upper thigh and didn't move. They walked for quite a while, putting a good distance between them and the bar. Hitoshi's gut tightened. He prayed Nagisa would be okay. Finally, the man led him to a dark alleyway on the far end of the Kouhoku ward. There wasn't another soul in sight.
"So what's this 'compensation' you're demanding?" Hitoshi asked, pushing away from the man so they stood face to face.
"Not arresting me after this is done would be nice," the man smirked. "But, if you're offering…"
Hitoshi tried not to throw up, and he pulled out his knife. This man was a real dumbass, thinking he could lure an assassin into a hidden alleyway and have the upper-hand.
"Tell me what to know and maybe you'll leave this alley in one piece."
The man's smile finally dropped and he sighed. "Fine, fine. This so-called League came recruiting a couple weeks back for some big mission, talking up how they're gonna wreak havoc on society and kill All-Might. Now, I'm a criminal, but I still have a code. I'm kinda like your Tentacle teacher — I don't do killing."
Hitoshi's eye twitched. It was disgraceful for this man to even say Korosensei's name, much less compare himself to the teacher. He glared and brought the knife a little closer to the criminal's throat. The man got the message and continued talking.
"So I passed on the mission — and thank goodness, since everyone who accepted got arrested by your END friends — but I still heard where the League hideout is."
Hitoshi arched an eyebrow, waiting. "And?"
The man's disgusting grin returned, and he reached out to touch Hitoshi's exposed waist again. "Look, I feel like I should be getting a better deal for exchanging this invaluable information — AH!"
The brainwasher grabbed the arm and twisted it until he heard a satisfying pop. The man screamed and collapsed to the ground, and Hitoshi shoved him down. He delicately placed a bladed heel against the man's temple. "Okay. Here's the deal. You tell me everything you know about the League of Villains and their whereabouts, and I won't stab my heel through your head. Sounds good?"
Sure, this wasn't the most hero-like of interrogation methods, but he wasn't here as aspiring hero Zugzwang; he was here as a honeypot assassin, as Bitch-sensei's protégé, and as a really pissed off END agent. He wasn't actually going to kill this guy, but no one else needed to know that.
"Yes, yes! They say the League of Villains hides out in Kamino. One of the other Yokohama districts! I don't know for sure where, but they say it's some abandoned bar!"
Abandoned bar in Kamino? Wasn't Kamino right next to Kouhoku? Even without Ritsu online, it shouldn't be too difficult to find. "Anything else?" he demanded, putting the slightest bit more pressure on his heel. The man whimpered.
"I-I, well…" The pressure increased, and the man panicked. "I-It's only rumors, I swear, but people have been saying that the Hero Killer Stain is meeting with them tonight!"
Hitoshi lifted his heel and stepped away, shocked. The Hero Killer? In Kamino with the League? Tonight? Were they creating some kind of team-up, negotiating to work together? Or maybe they already had an alliance. What were they planning?
Having heard enough, Hitoshi brainwashed the man and commanded him to sleep. As his thoughts raced, Hitoshi pulled out his devices, but they were still out of commission from the man's EMP quirk. Well, shit. Now he was stranded in Yokohama without any way of contacting END and—
...and somewhere else in Yokohama, the Hero Killer Stain was meeting with the League of Villains, possibly planning the end of the world, and he was doing nothing about it. And it'd be incredibly, incredibly stupid to do this without backup, but who knows how long it would take him to reach the bar and hunt down Nagisa? Stain might already be gone by then.
Which means, if he's going to be a hero, he has to go to Kamino and find the League of Villain's hideout himself.
-.-.-.-
Hitoshi took the nearest subway to Kamino, ignoring all the looks he got on the streets (yes, he looked like a teenage hooker, stop staring!) as he hunted down this 'abandoned bar.' It only took brainwashing a few locals before he finally found what he was looking for.
The building was old, extremely run down, and all of the windows were boarded up. However, he could still see a sliver of light coming from inside. He crept over silently, pressed his ear against the window, and strained to hear the voices inside.
"You lack conviction," a voice growled. "Men like you just wish to destroy and kill with no real purpose. Even these assassins you loathe so much have more of a moral standard than you."
...the hell?
"You say that, but you've never even met the little freaks," said Shigaraki (he'd recognize that raspy, grating voice anywhere). "Kurogiri, send this man anyway already. I'm quite finished with him."
"I...I can't move. It must be his quirk."
Paralysis quirk. If it really was Stain in there, that was good information to know.
"You're right, I haven't met an END agent, and I don't really care to — they're not a problem in society, just a byproduct of it. If the world wasn't filled with fake heroes chasing after easy fame and money or spineless villains that cause harm without cause, then that situation would have never happened. If you really want to be a villain, you should aspire to be more like the Tentacle than a petty thug." Hitoshi tensed at the mention of Korosensei while Stain continued, "The Tentacle never pointlessly murdered children like you want to do, and yet he's still more feared than you'll ever be. Just one act of evil — one that didn't even directly harm people — and he became number one. He made society think differently, see where their heroes have failed them. Any other villain is pathetic compared to him."
Shigaraki growled. "The Tentacle was weak. He had the chance, the power to kill All-Might, to destroy the society set up by the Symbol of Peace; he already weakened the foundation by blowing up the moon. But what does he do instead? Teach precious school children and let the current society rebuild itself with his death."
There was the sound of a struggle before Stain said, "While many of our goals and methods are different, our desire to destroy the current society is the same. Perhaps when this is over, I'll spare you and your precious League." There was a tense silence, and Hitoshi found himself holding his breath. "I believe we're done here. Send me back to Hosu; I have unfinished business there."
There was no doubt about it now; this was definitely the Hero Killer Stain, and he was about to go back to Hosu City and kill who knows how many innocent heroes. Hitoshi glanced around, his eyes landing on an air vent leading into the building. An incredibly stupid plan formed in his mind, but he knew it wouldn't work if he didn't contact END somehow.
He pulled out a phone that he swiped off the man from the alleyway. It still worked, and Hitoshi was feeling petty, so he stole it. He couldn't unlock the device, but he was capable of making an emergency phone call. But there was just one small issue.
He didn't know who to call.
What was he supposed to do? Call the police? What could they do? He didn't know Nagisa's number, and he had no way of contacting END on their secure line; not with Ritsu so heavily guarding it. He didn't have any memorized phone numbers—
Hitoshi paused, his eyes landing on the bandages on his palm. The bandage that was still covering the permanent marker-written phone number of one Kaminari Denki. Well, of all people to inform of his extremely stupid plan, he wasn't the worst.
He tore off the band-aid and dialed the slightly faded numbers (Kaminari used one good sharpie, that's for sure). The phone rang and he prayed, prayed the boy would answer. Sure, he might be busy with his internship, but this was life or death and—
"Hello? Who is this?"
"Kaminari!" Oh, thank the lord.
"Shinsou? Hey, man, what's up? How's the internship going?"
"Kaminari, listen, I don't have much time," Hitoshi whispered, already starting to climb into the air vent. "I'm on a mission right now—"
"For END?!"
"—and my phone and watch have been taken out with a quirk, so I stole the villain's phone. I don't know any other numbers, and the police are useless for this situation, and you're the only one who can help me right now."
"...wait, is this because I gave you my number at the Sports Festival? Wow, am I going to save the world because of that? And Ashido said giving out my number made me look desperate."
Why, of all things, are you focusing on that?! Hitoshi wanted to scream, but he held it in. "Yeah, possibly. Look, I'm about to do something very, very stupid, and I might get killed—"
"Wait, what?!"
"—so I need you to help me contact END. You're interning with Kamui Woods, right?"
"Uh, yeah?"
"Good. After I hang up, I need you to call him. All Pro-Heroes have access to END's secure emergency line. Tell him he needs to tell END to head to Hosu City immediately, and that the Hero Killer and the League of Villains are about to attack the city."
Kaminari sputtered with protests, and Hitoshi gritted his teeth. He was running out of time. "Kaminari. Can I trust you to do this for me?"
The blond went quiet before saying, "You can. I'll get it done, Shinsou. But please, please try not to die, okay? We, uh, we still got to have our rematch."
Hitoshi smothered his grin with his hand and shoved the sudden bout of emotion away. "I'll see you later, Kaminari."
.-.-
Hitoshi's done a lot of stupid and reckless things in his life. He's gotten shot, kidnapped, and tortured for crying out loud. But arguably none of that compares to him sneaking into Kurogiri's warp gate before it closed and hiding on the wall of the water tower where the three villains stood. Man, if Nagisa or the League of Villains didn't kill him over this, then Aizawa definitely would. Or Midoriya. Or Bitch-sensei. Or Karasuma, or Karma, or Midnight, or Kaminari, or...well, the list goes on.
Stain went on about how only people who achieved great undertakings should be great heroes, and everyone else is fake; the usual spiel at this point. Hitoshi silently recorded it with the stolen phone. He was about to follow the Hero Killer when the man jumped off the building to "finish his business in Hosu," but he froze at Shigaraki's words.
"That guy really pisses me off," he growled, and Hitoshi could hear him scratching away at his skin like Takaoka used to do. "All of his self-righteous preaching, calling the Tentacle a great villain or END the victims of society. He's a damn fool."
Kurogiri replied, but Hitoshi's mind was racing elsewhere. Was that really Stain's view of END? As victims? As unwilling pawns in the government's game? How is it that of everyone in the world, the one man that saw through the facade, saw the truth...was a crazed murderer?
Oh, their luck.
"Stain and I will never fight for the same goal," Shigaraki spat, redrawing Hitoshi's attention. "Kurogiri, bring out the Nomu. We might as well make this interesting. Sooner or later, I'm going to destroy that big bad Hero Killer."
Nomu?!
Another warp gate opened below the water tower, and three brain-exposed beasts walked out. They looked much different than the Nomu from the USJ; they were smaller, and one even had wings. It looked like whoever was creating these new Nomu was still tweaking his formula. The Nomu leapt into the city and wasted no time to cause destruction. Hitoshi winced at the screams and considered his options. He had no way of contacting END, no way of knowing who was in this city to defend it. He could go after the Nomu and Stain, defend the city himself, but he'd leave the League of Villains unmarked. After the USJ attack, that'd be a very stupid thing to do. So, with that in mind, Hitoshi made his decision.
He had to take the two mastermind villains out.
-.-.-.-
While he was training to be a hero, Hitoshi's instincts would always be those of an assassin's. Which meant that instead of charging the villains head first like most Pros would, Hitoshi lied in wait for the perfect time to strike.
Thankfully, he didn't have to wait for long. About fifteen minutes into the attack, Shigaraki and Kurogiri were discussing how destructive and useful the Nomu were when Shigaraki mentioned, "These stupid pets make it much easier. I don't even have to bother fighting while I'm injured."
Injured? That was news to Hitoshi. The USJ attack was weeks ago, so it shouldn't be from that. Sounds like the confrontation with Stain was even worse than Hitoshi thought.
Nonetheless, knowing that at least one of his opponents was injured was something he couldn't pass up. He silently flipped his body upward so he was crouched behind the villains on the water tower. Making sure to stay in the shadows, he slipped on his capture rings and pulled out a nerve-knife.
"Yeah, your shoulder looks pretty messed up," Hitoshi drawled, slicing his knife at Kurogiri's arms to immobilize them first (he's learned from last time). "Aren't knife wounds the worst?"
"Who's there? Wait, no, I recognize that voice. You're that brainwashing brat from END," Shigaraki growled, taking a step back. His fingers twitched. "How the hell did you get up here?"
"If you recognize me as the 'brainwashing brat,' you should at least have the decency to remember how my quirk works," said Hitoshi, brainwashing the hand-villain instantly. "But if you really want to know, I snuck in through Kurogiri's warp gate. It was surprisingly easy to do."
Kurogiri at least had the brain to remain quiet. His arms were paralyzed thanks to the nerve-knife wounds, but Hitoshi still remained on edge.
"You know, you guys are quite terrible at making alliances," he continued to bait. "Here you have one of the most feared villains in the world since Korosensei, and you decide to throw your little pet monsters around and make his life a pain? Not exactly the negotiation strategy I was taught. But, granted, it sounds like you guys are still bitter about Korosensei, so you're probably just jealous that this guy has more of a reputation than you guys, huh?"
Still silence. Hitoshi sighed and brandished his knife. "Don't worry though, you'll have plenty of time to learn to make friends in prison."
Hitoshi finally stepped out of the shadows, revealing his honeypot get-up to the villains for the first time. Kurogiri's glowing eyes widened.
"I thought you were a boy."
…
"REALLY? THAT'S WHAT IT TAKES TO GET YOU TO RESPOND?!"
Bristling like a cat, he put away his weapons. "Can't believe I foil your plans, take advantage of your quirk, cut your arms, and call you out for being stupid, and all you have to say is that I look like a girl? Stupid Bitch-sensei with her stupid techniques and her stupid costumes ruining everything. I can't even kiss someone without worrying about almost killing them…"
Shigaraki was brainwashed, so there's no way he could react, but Hitoshi sensed he was screaming on the inside.
Hitoshi was contemplating how to contact the police without his Ritsu-watch when the winged Nomu appeared out of nowhere. His massive wing slammed into Hitoshi and the villains, throwing them off the water tower and onto the rooftop below. The brainwasher hit the ground hard with Shigaraki landing right on top of him.
Oh shit.
Knowing the blow knocked them free of brainwashing, Hitoshi scissored his legs around Shigaraki's hips and flipped them around. He straddled the hand-villain, pinning his legs, and he grabbed both of his wrists and pinned them above his head. Through the hand mask, Hitoshi could see Shigaraki's red eyes bulging out of his head, and he wasn't fighting back at all. Though it disgusted him, Hitoshi's training took over, and he gave his killer a seductive smile.
Kurogiri, however, kicked Hitoshi in the side hard, knocking him off Shigaraki. Though his arms were immobilized, it seemed he was still capable of fighting. Both villains rose to their feet, Shigaraki slowly snapping out his honeypot daze.
"While it's impressive you were able to sneak in through my warp gate," Kurogiri said. "That will ultimately be your demise, child."
Hitoshi smirked and drew his knife again. "Doubt it."
He flicked out his capture rings with his left hand and swiped with his right, taking out one of Shigaraki's legs. The villain howled and reached for Hitoshi's throat, but he ducked and kick-spun the hand-villain in the chest. Kurogiri kicked at the brainwasher again, but Hitoshi blocked it and shoved him back as well.
Out of the corner, Hitoshi spotted a news helicopter flying nearby. He tensed, feeling exposed. His distraction allowed Shigaraki to attack again, limping forward on one leg. Hitoshi barely jumped out of the way and kicked Shigaraki's side.
Neither villain was talking now, wary of Hitoshi's quirk. He wished he had his artificial voice chords. This was the last time he was going on a mission with so little gear, costume aesthetics be damned.
At least he still had his capture rings. He flicked them out, wrapping both villains up and electrocuting them. They screamed, both falling to their knees, but then that stupid flying Nomu returned, slamming into Hitoshi's back. He stumbled forward and realized now what Aizawa meant when he said the capture rings kept him from using his hands. Shigaraki charged forward and grabbed the sleeve of his crop top, disintegrating it. Before he could reach his skin, however, Hitoshi released his capture rings and sucker-punched Shigaraki's face so hard his hand mask came off.
Hitoshi got one glance at the villain's face and shuddered. "Oh, shit, no wonder you wear that thing—"
The brainwasher barely avoided the warp gate in time, jumping to the other side of the building. Kurogiri seemed to be regaining movement in his arms, then. Hitoshi should've cut him deeper.
He was preparing himself for this fight to get a whole lot worse when Shigaraki — who laid on the ground and covered his face with his hands like a pouting child — rasped, "Kurogiri, get us out of here."
And before Hitoshi could do anything about it, the warp appeared, consuming them. Before his head disappeared, Shigaraki looked at the brainwasher one last time and sneered his cracked lips.
"We'll make you regret this."
Then, they were gone.
-.-.-.-
"I'm here, live, in Hosu City! We've just received word that the two men associated with the attacks of U.A. were spotted in the city. We have reason to believe that they are the ones behind the three monsters attacking the city. Footage was captured of the villains fighting a mysterious young woman before fleeing the scene. No one knows who this woman is, but some say she looks very similar to the END agent who won the Sports Festival last week."
-.-.-.-
Todoroki was staring at Izuku, not backing down, and Karma was glaring, and Izuku was panicking and choking and he didn't know what to say because how was he supposed to answer a question like that, especially with Karma right behind him, listening in? Does he lie, does he tell the truth, a half-truth, what's the protocol? Why is Todoroki even asking this, oh Korosensei does he know?
His worrisome thoughts consumed his mind, and the next thing he knew, the world was turning upside down and he was being held in the air by his foot. Lovro glared and the green-haired boy squeaked.
"Why are you letting your guard down with a villain nearby?" his ex-mentor growled, gesturing to the Hero Killer. "Just because you apprehended him doesn't mean he's not a threat; you know this, Izuku."
The green-haired boy whimpered. "Y-Yes, sorry, s-sir…"
Thankfully, the attention was drawn away from him when Karma approached. "Lovro. I didn't know you were in the area. Shouldn't you be in a meeting in Shinjuku?"
There was a challenging threat in the air. Lovro dropped Izuku and he crashed into the ground while the Pro-Assassin turned to the END commander. "There was an unforeseen change of plans…" The assassin and the agent walked away, leaving Izuku alone with an unconscious Stain, a traumatized Iida, and Todoroki. The half-and-half boy had yet to stop staring.
"Ah…" The panic returned. "I-I-I don't really, um, think that I should, uh, be commenting on that. It's not my place to share…"
Unfortunately, this seemed to be all the answer Todoroki needed. His eyes sharpened and landed on the commander's retreating form.
"I see."
What do you 'see?' Izuku wanted to scream. What do you know, what are you thinking, how much do you know, are you aware that Karma is your long-lost—
"Who is that man?" Iida interrupted, oblivious of their conversation. His lost eyes were locked on Lovro, and Izuku was grateful for the distraction.
"That's Lovro. He's one of the top assassins in the world, and he's famous for training most of the upcoming generation of assassins. He used to mentor me back in E-class," explained Izuku, and his two classmates stiffened. "He was, uh, less than pleased seeing me in the Sports Festival and decided to crash my internship."
His classmates were stunned silent, but Izuku welcomed it. He barely had enough energy to keep up these half-assed excuses and vague white lies.
But then Gran Torino showed up with Endeavor and his sidekicks not far behind, and Izuku was two seconds away from leaving because nope, he definitely didn't have enough energy for this.
"Shouto," the man growled, eyeing his son (well, the son that he knew was his son). "You didn't tell me you were leaving to partner up with...them." The Flame Hero glared at the END agents. Karma stopped walking, his body completely tensed. Todoroki's posture was the same, and Izuku fought the urge to punch Endeavor in the face.
"I was protecting my classmates, sir," answered Todoroki. Endeavor frowned, and that's when he noticed the tied-up form of Stain on the ground. His flames blazed, forcing everyone back.
"Hero Killer!" The Number Two Hero roared and raised his flame-ridden hand at the villain. Izuku moved without thinking, jumping in Endeavor's way.
"What are you doing?!" he screeched. "He's already been apprehended!"
"Out of my way, END. He deserves to burn for his crimes," growled Endeavor.
"Stop it, Endeavor. He's tied up and going to jail. I'm not going to stand here and let you kill him!"
People shouted for him to back down, but Izuku refused. He wouldn't let this happen. He couldn't.
Gran Torino waved desperately. "Kid, just move!"
"No! I won't let this happen! The hero code doesn't support killing for a reason, even if it's a villain! We have no right to take their life just because they're criminals, no matter how many people they've hurt. Bloodlust only creates more bloodlust. It's this mindset that killed Korosensei, that made us kill—" His voice cracked and his vision blurred with tears. Endeavor's flames crept closer, but Izuku couldn't feel any heat; no doubt Karma's doing. He stared at the Pro-Hero's cold, calculating eyes.
"An assassin stopping someone from killing?" the Flame Hero spat. "Isn't that just—"
A large, flying form smacked into Endeavor, sending the Pro-Hero flying across the street. The form, some kind of winged Nomu, crashed to the ground a few feet away, and the mysterious person on top of it sauntered off. Izuku did a double-take. It couldn't be- there's no way- but that purple hair, who else could it be?
"I would say the landing could've been a little better, but I think it was pretty spot-on," Shinsou drawled, releasing the capture rings that were acting like horse reins on the flying Nomu. His razor blade heels punctured the beast as he walked, thoroughly taking it out. For a moment, all people could do was stare.
While the purple hair was still a dead giveaway of his identity, even that looked different than usual. It was down. Izuku lived with Shinsou and he's never seen him with his hair down; he literally just woke up with perfectly spiked hair. While water could dampen it for a little bit, a minute of towel drying later and it was back to its Einstein-like poof. His clothes simultaneously left nothing and everything to the imagination, and the light dusting of makeup somehow made him look more androgynous than his drag queen disguise.
And then he saw how annoyed his best friend looked because of all the staring, and he had to turn around to keep himself from laughing. Karma didn't even bother, cackling profusely.
"Good to see you, Agent Control. Having a nice night out?"
Shinsou glared and flicked his capture rings so they'd smack Karma in the face. It only made the Alpha Unit captain laugh even harder.
"Is that...Is that Shinsou?" Iida sputtered, his cheeks tinted pink. Todoroki cocked his head.
"Why is Shinsou dressed like that?"
Izuku smothered his own laughter with his hand while his best friend turned red in the face. "This is just a disguise for a mission."
"A crossdressing mission?"
"No!" Shinsou screeched, scandalized, while Karma popped up and unhelpfully shouted, "Yes!"
The laughing intensified, and even the sidekicks and Izuku's mentors looked a little amused. Shinsou rubbed his face and sighed. "I'm going to ignore this and…" the brainwasher trailed off, his eyebrows arching as he stared at something behind Izuku. "Um. Is he supposed to be standing?"
Izuku spun around and found Stain on his feet and the bonds by his feet. He held a knife, one they must've missed when they patted him down, and the bandage covering his lack of nose had slipped away. Everyone moved to attack, but that oppressive aura suffocated them and left them as paralyzed as Stain's quirk would.
The Hero Killer whirled on Endeavor. "You. You are the epitome of a false hero." He took a step forward, and the crushing aura only intensified. "People like you have destroyed the word hero! I can see why the Tentacle only let these children kill him; only they are worthy to stop villains like him or myself!" The END agents tensed, and Stain pointed his blade and jumped at Endeavor. "So die, you disgusting—"
A tranquilizer bullet struck the side of his neck, and the Hero Killer collapsed at Karma's feet. His gun remained pointed in the air, and even though that oppressive aura was gone, even though the Hero Killer wasn't using his quirk...no one moved. They could only stare at the scene before them. At the fallen villain and the downed hero, and the teenage assassin standing in between them.
It's a privilege to be assassinated by you all, Korosensei had said. Izuku always thought it meant something personal, something out of love. Yet here the Hero Killer was, saying something similar. Saying they were the only ones worthy of stopping great villains. Is...Is that what Korosensei meant that night?
Izuku turned his head up and stared at the permanent crescent moon, as if it would hold all the answers. As if Korosensei would be there to explain.
It didn't. He wasn't.
-.-.-.-
The police and Delta Unit arrived shortly after, along with an enraged Nagisa and Ms. Jelavić. They took turns strangling Shinsou ("Why didn't you contact us?! Who trained you?!") while Maehara and Kanzaki instructed their team to create a civilian perimeter and tie up the Nomu and Stain.
"I'm glad you were still able to move," Izuku told Karma after the fight. "His aura was so strong, I thought it was going to crush me."
Karma smirked. "Trust me. Sparing against Nagisa is much worse."
A set of EMTs arrived to check out their injuries, along with some more heroes. Izuku was stunned to see Kamui Woods among them; what was he doing in Hosu City?
"Shinsou!"
...Kaminari too? What the hell was going on?
The yellow-haired boy sprinted towards the brainwasher. "Hey, dude, I did exactly what you said. I hope we got here fast enough…"
Shinsou turned away from Ms. Jelavić and Nagisa, letting Kaminari see the 'Queer Party Boy' disguise in its full effect. Kaminari turned so red, Izuku worried for his health. Ms. Jelavić's eyes lit up and she grinned devilishly.
"Hmm? Who's this, Shitsou?"
The brainwasher sighed. "This is Kaminari, the one who contacted you for me. The person I ran into knocked out my watch and phone, and I didn't know anyone else's numbers. I didn't go radio silent on purpose."
Nagisa nodded and introduced himself to the blushing boy, while Ms. Jelavić's eyes just narrowed. "And why would you know... oh." She rushed forward and pinched Kaminari's cheeks. "You must be the boy who gave Shinsou your number during the Sports Festival! I've just been dying to meet you." She released Kaminari's cheeks and grabbed his hair. "And he's blond too! Oh, Shitsou, I told you~"
Her boobs were dangerously close to Kaminari's face, and his blush somehow became worse. Izuku was really starting to worry about his health.
-.-.-.-
r/END of the world
29.9k likes - Posted by u/undergrounderrr - 3 hours ago
Hero Killer Apprehended by END in Hosu
Read this news article about the Hero Killer getting taken down by END agents in Hosu City. This video of his 'final stand' and backstory got leaked a few hours ago. Basically, a lot of heroes are fake and only do it for fame and money, END only exists because heroes can't do their job, and society needs to be fixed. Thoughts?
ludiludi - 3 hours ago - 15k likes
As terrifying as Stain is, I can see where he's coming from, especially regarding END. It's all pretty fucked up imo.
princrys830 - 1 hour ago - 5.1k likes
Do you guys think this could spark a new age of villainism?
-.-.-.-
Izuku laid awake in the hospital bed, Todoroki and Iida asleep in the beds adjacent to his. Shinsou and Karma were checked out by the EMTs for having minor injuries and left with END; judging by the grave expression on his best friend's face, it seemed Shinsou's mission brought about a lot of unpleasant news. Izuku was sure that if he didn't hear it in a mission report by morning that Shinsou would tell them at the apartment later on.
Following their admission to the hospital, the Hosu Chief of Police, Tsuragamae, came in to inform them that Stain was officially in custody, but the good news stopped there. Since they used their quirks without their supervisors there, Iida, Todoroki and the heroes they're interning under had to receive punishment for breaking the law. Izuku and Gran Torino were spared because, as a government agent, Izuku could use his quirk to fight.
The punishments weren't terrible, thankfully. Iida and Todoroki weren't allowed to get any recognition for helping take Stain down and their involvement was kept under wraps. Instead, END claimed full responsibility, which was a rarity; usually, they pushed credit onto other heroes or organizations. It's why they claimed Bakugou took out the Nomu at the USJ.
"Midoriya?"
The green-haired boy jolted and looked up at the voice. "Todoroki? What's up?"
The red-and-white-haired boy sat in his bed, staring at his hands. A small flame danced across his fingertips. Izuku blinked at the open display of the fire quirk.
"Would it be alright if I shared something extremely personal with you? It's been bugging me all week."
Izuku blinked. Todoroki's mannerisms were just so...strange. It wasn't exactly normal to ask a classmate you barely know that. Then again, it's also not normal to corner a classmate and tell them how your dad is an asshole and your mom poured boiling water on your face. A lot of things Todoroki did wouldn't exactly be considered normal.
Realizing he was taking too long to respond, Izuku scrambled to answer. "A-Ah, yes, of course. I'll just—" he glanced at Iida's sleeping form and lowered his voice. "—come over there so you can...yeah."
He awkwardly scampered across the room and sat on the far end of Todoroki's bed. He tried not to focus on how fast his heart was beating.
"I went to visit my mother, after the Sports Festival," Todoroki began. "To tell her I was going to become the hero she always wanted me to be."
There was silence, and Izuku felt the need to fill it. "That's great news, Todoroki…"
The red haired boy hummed. "Yes. She seemed much better than the last time I saw her; much more aware of her surroundings. But there was something that hadn't changed, and it's bothering me. Something about my twin."
Izuku tensed and tried to play dumb. "Your...twin?"
"Yes. A fraternal brother. He died shortly after being born, and my siblings tell me it was the final straw for her mind. She was never quite able to cope; she always addressed him as if he was still alive, would buy everything in twos. It angered my father; he wanted the memory of the son too weak to live to be erased forever."
Izuku balled his fists. A dark part of him, the assassin part of him, wished they let the Hero Killer attack Endeavor at the end.
"It was brushed off as another sign of her illness; a hopeless delusion of a heartbroken mother. She claimed that my twin was simply sent away, and that he'd be back one day and we'd be a family again. When I was really little, I believed her and dreamed of the day I'd meet Haruji. I wasn't allowed to get close to my other siblings, but I prayed to stay by Haruji's side when he returned. Obviously, I quickly learned the truth of what happened to my brother, but even after all these years, I couldn't help but hope…"
The flame grew a little brighter, and Izuku felt sick to his stomach. Korosensei, how could he keep this secret when Todoroki looked so broken? How could he look Todoroki in the eye and say 'it seems like you really love your twin brother, sorry he's dead' when he knows that's not the truth?
Please don't make me say it, Todoroki, please don't…
"The hospital workers say she's getting better. That her mental health has almost fully returned." Todoroki turned, his heterochromatic eyes staring into Izuku's soul. "So why...why does she still insist that he's alive?"
Izuku's throat tightened, but thankfully Todoroki didn't see his silence as guilt. The flame on his hand extinguished.
"I'm sorry if this made you uncomfortable. There's just not many people I can talk to…"
Izuku, the emotional baby he is, teared up. "T-Todoroki…"
He reached out, not sure what he was going to do — grab Todoroki's hand, hug him, do something to comfort him. He froze under Todoroki's piercing gaze, his hand outreached, and Todoroki shuffled forward—
BEEP. BEEP. BEEP.
His Ritsu-watch blared to life and Izuku jolted so hard he tumbled off the bed. Blushing bright red (what just was that?!), he rushed to silent his watch and risked a glance at Todoroki. The red-and-white-haired boy stared at his own hand accusingly, as if he was blaming himself for the moment being ruined, and Izuku's blush grew.
"Hmm…" Iida stirred and sat up in his bed. "Midoriya? Is everything alright?"
"A-Ah, yes, sorry to wake you, Iida…" He trailed off as he read the incoming transmission on his phone. His stomach churned.
"Midoriya?"
He blinked and turned to his concerned classmates. He lowered his wrist and tried to smile. It was fake, forced. "Everything's fine, guys. I promise."
He lied.
-.-.-.-
Agent Control's recordings and intel prove the League of Villains responsible for Hosu attacks. Gamma Unit is detecting unprecedented amounts of talk in the underground. Agent Tentacle is trying to remove a circling video of Stain's propaganda that is suspected to be behind it. Agent Statistic predicts a spike in crime to occur over the next few weeks. All agents instructed to be on high alert.
-.-.-.-
"Goodbye, Gran Torino! Thank you for helping me! I...I don't know if I could've come this far without your help."
Izuku bowed farewells to his new mentor (Lovro having left not long after the incident in Hosu City). The elderly Pro-Hero grinned and patted his head.
"Make sure you don't strain yourself as you increase your speed. If I hear you're running around coughing up blood again, I won't hesitate to contact Lovro."
(His two mentors seemed to have reached a begrudging alliance on the basis of dealing with him. Izuku was very afraid.)
The green-haired boy sweatdropped. "A-Ah, of course, sir…"
He turned to leave Gran Torino's apartment when the man stopped him again. "Midoriya."
"Yes, sir?"
Gran Torino frowned. "I shouldn't say anything, but since you already know about One For All, it's only fair…" The man sighed. "When you get back, ask Toshinori to tell you the whole story of his quirk. Something tells me it plays a bigger role than you think." The old man shook his head and grinned farewell. "I'll see you around, Korosenai."
Izuku gaped and nodded, leaving in silence. Possible implications of Gran Torino's words swirled through his head as he walked to the train station. The whole story of One For All? Plays a bigger role? In what? What was All-Might hiding?
-.-.-.-
When he returned to his own apartment, he found Shinsou hunched in a ball in front of his laptop. He barely glanced up when Izuku walked over.
"It just doesn't make any sense," he stated with no context. "How is this…"
He spun the laptop around aggressively. Izuku yelped and cowered while his best friend pointed to multiple things on his screen.
"This stupid video of Stain. The news footage of the League of Villains fighting me in Hosu. The recordings I got when I was following them. None of them should add up to what it has, so why does it?" He pulled at his hair, and Izuku stayed quiet, waiting for Shinsou to give him more context before commenting.
"Shigaraki hated the Hero Killer. That's why he sent the Nomus loose in the first place. Why did he bother pretending to cooperate with Stain at first though? And if Stain's capture is unearthing a bunch of his villain disciples, why is there a peaked interest in the League of Villains when the two hated each other? Tried to sabotage each other? How did this rumor that the League follows Stain ideologies come about in the first place? It doesn't make sense. It doesn't make sense…"
Izuku gently grabbed his best friend's hand and pulled it from his hair. "You're right. It doesn't make sense...unless maybe...but wouldn't we have heard something…?"
Shinsou snorted. "What's going on in that big head of yours, Jolly Green?"
It was a ridiculous question. Izuku never understood what was going on in his head; his subconscious always outmoving his ability to think. But…
"What if there was a boss pulling the strings? Someone like Shiro?" he breathed. "You said Shigaraki didn't want anything to do with Stain, but clearly someone within the League did — someone with more power than who we thought their leader was."
"A chessmaster," Shinsou added, his tired eyes becoming a bit more clear. "Shigaraki may be the League's king, but that doesn't mean he holds the true power. Of course, that explains so much now; Shigaraki is too much of a man child to actually come up with these plots. But who is it? Kurogiri? No, Shigaraki bosses him around too much…"
Izuku sweatdropped at the mumbling. So this is what it's like to be one the receiving end.
"Let's go to bed, Hitoshi," he said, closing the laptop. "We can think about it more in the morning."
-.-.-.-
Their first day back in 1-A was total chaos. Everyone was discussing their internships at once, it was overwhelming. Jirou and Asui apparently got some basic hand-on experience stopping villains and drug smugglers, respectively. Uraraka marched up to Izuku the moment he stepped into the class, a terrifying aura around her that vaguely reminded him of Devil-Karma.
"My internship was very enlightening. Next time we fight, I'm never going to flinch again," she declared. Izuku squeaked and meekly congratulated her.
"Aw, Poofy, what'd you do to your hair?" Shinsou mocked, grinning at the boiling Bakugou. Apparently, Best Jeanist didn't approve of Bakugou's usual hair and forced him to comb it down. Izuku giggled too. That was one of Korosensei's favorite punishments for students too.
But the majority of the talk surrounded Iida, Shinsou, Todoroki, and him, and their run-in with the Hero Killer. Granted, the class wasn't aware of the true story; all they knew was that they got attacked, and that Stain was eventually apprehended by END agents and Pro-Heroes.
"That's so intense, man," Kirishima said. "I'm relieved to know you're all okay!"
"Was it scary? Were you and Shinsou the ones that took him down?" Ashido asked and then paused. "I mean, if you're even allowed to share that information and all."
Izuku exchanged silent glances with his three companions. They long agreed with the story they were going to go with — that a distress beacon was sent out and respective backup was deployed and diffused the situation for them. That was basically the truth, anyways.
"No, we didn't. We just got really lucky another END agent happened to be nearby," answered Todoroki, glancing at Izuku suspiciously. The green-haired boy tried to remain passive looking.
"Hey, Kaminari, wasn't Kamui Woods one of the heroes called in to Hosu City? Did you get to go too?"
Izuku panicked momentarily — they never got the chance to talk to the blond boy about their cover story — but Kaminari just grinned and scratched the back of his head. "Yeah, but I didn't get to actually do anything, you know? Just tagged along!"
Kirishima grinned and threw an arm over Izuku's shoulder and lightly punched Kaminari's arm. "Well, whatever the case, let's just be glad it's over."
Izuku laughed but couldn't bring himself to agree. Gran Torino's words echoed in his mind, and he had a feeling this was far from 'over.'
-.-.-.-
For Hero Basic Training their first day back, they would be doing a simple rescue training race. They were broken up into groups of five and had to race against their group to 'save' All-Might, who was standing in the middle of Ground Gamma.
Izuku took a deep breath, recalling everything he learned on his internship. Ground Gamma was a mock industrial city, filled with tall factories and winding pipelines — plenty of road bumps to slow him down. With his old control, one slip-up and he'd be on the floor throwing up blood. But now, if he can just rein in his power…
The green-haired boy evaluated his opponents. Ashido could slide around pretty quick with her acid, but she'd struggle to climb and jump around fast enough. Ojirou and Sero's quirks let them fling around extremely quickly using the pipeline systems. Shinsou, while having no physical quirk to enhance his performance, was the biggest threat in Izuku's eyes. Shinsou, like all of 3-E, was a master of parkour, and everyone else would probably be underestimating him — a lethal mistake to make about an E-class assassin.
I can do this. If I run at my reduced speed, I'll still be a hundred times faster than everyone else here, and I won't have to worry about my quirk weakening me. I can win this.
All-Might called start and Izuku took off. He activated his glasses, allowing Chiba's quirk setting to pinpoint the perfect place to land his feet. Taking inspiration from Gran Torino, Izuku used the terrain to his advantage to push off and pick up momentum while running. He rushed passed Sero, Ashido, and Ojirou with ease, and All-Might was coming into view and—
"AH!"
His ankle caught on something, and he fell flat on his face.
"Wha…?" He glanced down to see what tripped him — he could've sworn there was nothing there, but nonetheless, his feet were undeniably tangled up in Shinsou's capture rings. "How?!"
A shadow passed over Izuku, and Shinsou flew over his head. His rings retracted, freeing his feet, but Izuku was too stunned and embarrassed to react.
Oh, Korosensei, I can't believe I just got trip-wired in front of All-Might!
-.-.-.-
After school, Izuku cornered All-Might in his office. Even though they haven't really spoken since before the internships, the man didn't seem too surprised to see him. If anything, he seemed to have predicted it, opening the door in his shrunken form and everything.
"Ah, All-Might, sir. I'm sorry to intrude, but, um, there's something I need to ask you about."
Yagi nodded and gestured for Izuku to take a seat on the opposing couch. "Yes, Gran Torino mentioned as much. Speaking of Gran Torino — it looks like your internship training was a success, even with the incident. I meant to say this earlier, but congratulations. It makes me very proud to see you begin to master your power and...are you okay?"
Izuku sniffled and wiped away giant globs of tears. "I-I'm fine! It, it just…" He took a deep breath, trying to compose himself. "It means a lot to hear you say that. You know, being my idol and all."
Yagi's gaze softened. "You've come a long way, kid. I may have not known you for long, and sometimes it feels like I should have met you months ago…" The man trailed off, shaking his head. "But nonetheless, you're doing good. I'm sure your...Korosensei would think the same thing if he was here."
Tears welled up again. "Really?"
Deep down, he knew Korosensei was proud of him, but to hear All-Might of all people say that...Izuku's heart swelled. A year ago, he could barely even dream of meeting his hero, much less receiving such kind words of praise and encouragement.
The Number One Hero huffed but smiled. "Really. Now, about what you wanted to speak with me about."
Snapping back to reality, Izuku flushed and tried to compose himself. "R-Right. Well, before I left, Gran Torino told me to ask you for the whole story about your quirk. About One For All. He said he thinks it's playing into this conspiracy plot. Do...do you know what he is talking about, sir?"
Yagi sighed and stared out the window at the glowing sunset. "Yes. In fact, I've been suspecting the same thing for a while now. I just didn't want to — I was a fool to think that he was really gone—"
Even though he was speaking vaguely, Izuku's mind clued him in on the implications. His eyes landed on Yagi's torso, where the massive wound laid.
"Young Midoriya," Toshinori said, his eyes turning back to the green-haired boy. "I think it's time I told you about All For One."