Chapter 25: Bakugou and Pals, Part 1

"Yo- uh... You've gotten really good at saving me!" Midoriya's voice sang out to her, a big smile on his face.

That was when Tsuyu's eyes shot open, and she sat upright in her bed. The crushing realization that, once again, this was only a dream weighed on her as the first rays of the rising sun began to trickle their way through her window.

She drew her knees up to her chest and gave a croaking groan.

For the last two nights, Asui had the same dream of her catching Midoriya only to wake up in a cold sweat. As a result, she had barely slept at all. She looked at her phone and realized that it was still the early; she wasn't planning on visiting Yaoyorozu with her class until the afternoon. With a heavy heart, she laid back down and wondered where Midoriya was now.

--

"I SAY THEE AGAIN, MORTAL!" Thor snarled, lifting All Might by his collar. "WHERE IS MIDORIYA?!"

All Might had toppled so many things in his course as the Number One Pro Hero of Japan. Very few things gave him pause, and he certainly never hesitated to throw down with a villain. He could say, with some sense of pride, that there was not much he feared, outside of Gran Torino, his former sidekick Sir Nighteye, and commitment (he was working on it).

He had never fought the God of Thunder though, and the enraged Asgardian currently lifting him off the ground in front of the entire police department (not at all bothered by the amount of guns trained on him) was causing a bit of sweat to cover his brow. "We've been tracking him down." The Symbol of Peace looked around him. "This is not the place for blows. And it won't solve anything."

Thor slowly set the other blonde down. All Might was not all that surprised that immediately after notifying Midoriya's mother of his disappearance, a strike of lightning met him at the police station.

"All Might," the lead detective whispered to the Hero, "Who's the nut?"

Before anyone could answer, Thor boomed, "I am Thor, God of Thunder and King of Asgard, a founding member of the Avengers."

Snickers rang up over some of the officers, but they were silenced as Thor gave them a glare, accompanied by a thunderclap outside.

The detective eyed Thor in disbelief though. "It can't be..."

"It is," All Might sighed. "Thor, this is Detective Naomasa Tsukauchi. He's the lead investigator on Midoriya's case, and a trusted ally of mine."

Thor looked at the mortal with a more formal sense of neutrality. "Greetings. I'm glad to see at least someone in this room has the sense to believe me."

"I don't have much of a choice," Tsukauchi explained. "My Quirk is Human Lie Detector. So I mean, I can tell what you're saying is true."

"Oh," Thor replied, a bit deflated. "A good ability for an officer of the Law."

"It's quite handy," Tsukauchi said, "I was just surprised. Most of the world thinks you're dead."

"Yes, well, staying on Midgard wasn't as enjoyable after all my friends and loved ones died," the god sniped, dryly. "Midoriya is something of a protege of mine, though. His well-being is paramount to me."

"Makes a lot of sense, considering the hammer and the lightning the kid is known for," the detective conceded. "Lots of people here have taken notice."

"We've got a few leads," All Might assured him, hoping to keep Thor's temper from flaring again. "Can we count on your assistance in our search?"

"I've already found him."

This was a new voice in the room, causing everyone to jump, and every gun to be pointed elsewhere. Loki had appeared in the shadows of the room; a much more subtle appearance than Thor's booming thunderclaps and dramatic threats. He looked positively bored out of his mind. "I'm not sure what disappoints me more, brother; getting guns pointed at me by mortals again, or that you didn't think to come to me first."

"You know this guy too?" Tsukauchi asked, exasperated as to how many people could burst into his office.

"My brother, Loki." Thor grumbled. His face flushed a bit. "I... well, it hadn't occurred to me to ask you when I got the news."

"That's because your first course of action has always been to punch things," Loki sneered, stopping to shake All Might's hand. "I don't believe we met - Loki, God of Mischief - I've always been a big fan."

"Really?" All Might asked, surprised.

"Not of the Heroics, just for how much you seem to irk my dear brother."

"LOKI!" Thor snapped. "You said you know where Midoriya is."

Loki rolled his eyes, but turned and waved his hand in the air to make a circle. The air rippled at his movements, and a hole seemed to open out of thin air. A vision appeared of Midoriya strapped to a chair. "A simple scrying spell," the god drawled. "Adjusted slightly, we even get the outside of the building."

"Checks out, that's one of their locations we've been staking out the last few weeks," the detective nodded, checking the building with some of his notes. "Wouldn't have been my first guess, but..."

Thor turned to leave but he was grabbed by All Might. "Wait! Before you go storming off, let's think about this."

"What is there to think about?!" Thor snapped, nostrils flaring.

"With all due respect, your Highness," Tsukauchi replied, "We've been tracking the League of Villains ever since their break in at the school. I think your brother here confirmed Midoriya is no worse for wear, correct?"

Loki nodded. "No harm has fallen him."

"Right. If we play our cards right, we can take down the whole organization and get the kid back," Tsukauchi advised. "And if we had you on our side, I think we'd all feel a bit more secure in these plans."

Thor paused at the request. It WAS a completely logical request, but... "How much time are you looking for."

"Two days, tops."

Thor narrowed his eyes. "You shall have your two days. But if any harm should fall upon Midoriya, I shall declare the wrath of the heavens upon you, so help me."

Thor stormed out, followed by his brother, slamming the door behind him. Once they were safely out of earshot, All Might turned to his friend. "What do you need me to do?"

"Get a team of Pros together to get these Villains," the detective commanded. "We're going to get these sons of bitches."

--

Principal Nezu was, in his opinion at least, a pro at press conferences.

Still, this was the first one he'd ever had to give for a student kidnapped by a villainous organization. They leaked a tape of their kidnapping, promising to get the powers of nature Midoriya possessed on their side, forcing the principal's hand.

A reporter stood up and asked him, "And what if the League of Villains succeeds in making such a powerful student a Villain? How will UA deal with that failure if Midoriya Izuku starts raining lightning down across Japan?"

For once, the super-intelligent principal seemed at a loss for words, but Aizawa stood up instead.

"With all due respect, sir," Aizawa began, a look of deadly seriousness on his face. "Anyone who thinks Midoriya could be a villain, even with all the destructive power of his Quirk, has never spent more than five minutes with him. He lives and breaths to rescue the innocent. The League of Villains will undoubtedly fail, because Midoriya is a Hero, through and through."

The Principal breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you, Eraserhead," he breathed, silently, and spoke up, "No further questions."

From the back of the room, Detective Tsukauchi grinned. That had gone perfectly.

--

Bakugou opened his eyes to a sterile, white environment. "Gruuuuh..."

"Baku-bro? GUYS, BAKU-BRO IS AWAKE!"

"...Shitty Hair, 'zat you?" Bakugou grumbled, sitting up slowly and clutching his head. He blinked as the room came into focus, and he saw Kirishima, Mineta, and Kaminari in the room with him.

"About time you came to," Mineta scoffed, trying to hide the bags under his eyes.

"Yeah, Kirishima has been dragging us here for the last three days, saying you'd wake up soon," Kaminari yawned.

Bakugou rubbed his eyes, still coming around. "You fry your brain again? You just said I was out for three days."

"Check the date, spiky," Mineta said, showing the explosive boy his phone. "You HAVE been out for three days."

"WHAT THE FUCK WHY DIDN'T ANYONE WAKE ME SOONER!" Bakugou screamed.

"SHHH!" A nurse scolded him as she passed the room. "People are resting!"

As she left Kaminari shrugged. "Dude, you've been passing in and out the whole time. Mumbling about, 'that shitty Deku.'"

"Well yeah, I had a nightmare some shitty villains kidnapped him instead of me, thinking he had the power to destroy Japan," Bakugou grunted. "Fucking crazy."

Kirishima, Kaminari, and Mineta all exchanged uncomfortable looks, not sure of how to break the news to him.

--

Mirio Togata was confused that morning, and was just as confused as he walked into Principal Nezu's office during break. Making the matter more confusing was the fact that both Sir Nighteye and All Might were there.

"Sir, what a surprise!" Mirio beamed. "What are you guys doing here?"

Sir Nighteye grinned, rather creepily. Not his fault though, it was really the only way he knew how to grin. "A day I've been preparing for is finally here, young Mirio!"

"Have a seat," All Might grinned, though his smile was a bit more... melancholic. "There are some things I need to discuss with you, in light of the recent events. It realized I needed to come to a decision."

Mirio Togata closed the door to the Principal's office, not realizing that when he left... he'd be a brand new person.

--

On the first floor of the hospital, Asui sat by herself in the waiting room. The rest of class 1-A had come to visit Yaoyorozu, who had gotten a concussion in the attack. She herself wanted to be alone; the class had been together near-constantly since the attack between questions from the authorities and visits to their classmates (though Bakugou's friends splintered off).

She wouldn't tell her classmates she hadn't slept well in the last three days, though Iida and Uraraka could tell. They were the ones closest to her, after all.

How could see? Every time she tried, all she saw was...

"Midoriya..." she ribbited to herself.

"You thinking of the missing beefcake too?"

Asui jumped and looked at the end table next to her, surprised to see Setsuna's disembodied head sitting there, looking up at her.

"It's pretty rude to eavesdrop, kero," Asui deadpanned.

"It's a specialty of mine, with my Quirk," Setsuna hummed, pleased with herself. But her expression turned serious within a blink. "Look... I can't stop thinking about him either."

The words hit Asui like a punch in the abdomen, but Setsuna continued. "He was only still in those woods because I asked him to help me and my friends. If I had just let him get out, you'd still have your hunky classmate."

Tsuyu looked at her feet glumly. "Kero... that sounds like him, alright. Always thinking of others."

Tokage looked at her fellow green-haired UA student and gave her a sad grin. "You really like this guy, huh?"

Asui nodded, solemnly. "Yeah."

"Oh wow, I was expecting the real flustered like, 'Ah, no! What! No, it's not like I like him or anything.'" Tokage blinked, surprised.

"I like to be pretty straightforward," Tsuyu shrugged.

"Well... hey, more power to you." Setsuna said. "Look, I saw your classmate, Yaoyorozu. She had asked for me to go get you." She looked around to see if anyone was eavesdropping, "Between you and me, I think she might have a lead on where some of the villains are."

Asui's eyes widened, and before Setsuna could get in another word, she had taken off for Momo's room.

--

"... so I had given one of the tracking devices to the police, but I made a second device for myself." The class Vice President explained, sadly, to Uraraka, Asui, Iida, Todoroki, and Setsuna. The girl from class 1-B had tagged along for the guilt she was still having on getting Midoriya wrapped up in the entire situation.

She showed her classmates the blinking device she had been keeping under her pillow. The coordinates bleeped steadily on the screen, showing an unmoving coordinate.

"I can't believe you and Awase got a tracking device on one of those monsters, " Setsuna said with a low whistle.

"Do you think they'd really be keeping Izuku in the same place as one of them?" Tsuyu asked.

"You guys saw the press conference the detective gave," Iida replied, sternly. "They have no leads on the whereabouts of the League of Villains. It would be the only real starting point for the Pros and police to find Midoriya."

"Right," Momo agreed. "I just... I wanted you guys to know, so that you'd have hope the Heroes are going to rescue him soon."

Yaoyorozu's door slid open with a loud thud, making them jump. No one was expecting Bakugou to limp in, bandages covering both arms, and Kirishima following him with his IV stand.

"Or, Ponytail, we can just go get the Shitty Deku ourselves." Bakugou grunted.

Iida had to restrain himself from going berserk on his classmate, though his arms still flailed everywhere as he spoke. "Are you crazy Bakugou?! Not only is that illegal, it's against all U.A. Policies! We could die, or worse, get expelled!"

"Not too mention, you tell Midoriya to die on a daily basis," Todoroki added. "Why are you suddenly saying we should go rescue him?"

"Well, for one; it's not about rescuing him." Bakugou scoffed. "The League of Villains captured him because they thought he was the most powerful student in Class 1-A, and that with all that angry hammer swinging he did in the Sports Festival, he could be a Villain. THAT'S STUPID! I'm the strongest! And I'm going to show them the mistake they made!"

"Are you..." Asui narrowed her eyes, "Are you mad they kidnapped him and not you?"

"They'd never be able to kidnap me, I'M TOO STRONG!" Bakugou snarled. "But I'm going to show them that I'm just as powerful as that shitty Deku! IT'S A MATTER OF PRIDE!"

"MANLY pride." Kirishima added.

"Please tell me you're not going along with this," Yaoyorozu asked Kirishima, flatly.

"Of course!" Kirishima beamed. "Otherwise I'd be leaving my bro behind."

"Second," Bakugou interjected, "If anyone else HAD gotten kidnapped, Midoriya would have flown out of this hospital with that stupid hammer already and tried to rescue them. Especially if it was one of you," he motioned to Asui, Iida, Todoroki, and Uraraka. "You can't tell me he wouldn't."

"Yes, I admit that despite his grades, Midoriya would absolutely do something reckless and stupid to try and help others." Iida reluctantly agreed. "That doesn't mean WE should do the same -"

"I'm in." Todoroki interrupted bluntly.

"I JUST -" Iida blurted out, taking his glasses off and rubbing the bridge of his nose. He turned to Yaoyorozu, "As class representatives, we can't just let them do this."

Momo rubbed her arm, nervously. "That.. I'm not sure. It doesn't feel right to just sit here either."

"I'm in," Setsuna shrugged. "If it gets bad, I'll bail, but I feel like I owe the guy one."

"I also don't know if that's what Deku would want," Uraraka added, causing everyone to turn and look at her.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Bakugou asked with a grunt.

"Midoriya would definitely rush in to save us," Uraraka relented, "but would he want us to do the same thing? I think even in this situation, he'd prioritize keeping other people safe and not causing more casualties. What do you think, Tsuyu?"

She, and the rest of the occupants of the room, turned towards Asui. Tsuyu looked to her feet, pondering the matter.

"I know that Izuku would be doing whatever he could to rescue one of us, but we're not Heroes." She sighed. "If we start doing whatever we want, are we any better than Villains, kero?"

Even her tone sounded unsure of the question.

Her question hung heavy over the atmosphere of the room, a reminder of the weight of what they were discussing. It was Bakugou who shrugged it off first. "Tch. Whatever, Frog Face. I am getting checked out of this shithole this evening. And when I leave, I'm heading to those coordinates. Any of you extras want to help, you can find me at the front of the hospital. Let's go, Kirishima."

The blonde turned and left, but the redhead called after him, "Be right there, bro." He turned back towards Asui, "Hey, Tsu, can I get a word in the hall?"

Asui nodded, and followed the spiky-haired boy into the hallway. Once Kirishima had shut Momo's door, she asked, "What's up, kero?"

"Look, I respect your decision," Kirishima started, "I know this plan of Bakugou's is crazy. Part of why I'm going is to make sure he doesn't get himself killed with those broken fingers. The other part is because Midoriya's a good guy. But.. I mean, no offense, I'm not sure I buy what you're saying."

"What do you mean?"

"Do you remember your fight with Bakugou at the Sports Festival?" Kirishima asked.

"Right up until he knocked me out," Tsuyu deadpanned.

"R- uh... right," Kirishima stammered, not realizing it might have been a touchy subject. "After that happened, before the match with Midoriya started, I saw Midoriya watching the whole thing... and I gotta say, that was the most pissed off I'd ever seen him."

Tsuyu's cheeks tinged red, so Kirishima continued. "I also saw a bit of you guys helping each other in the Beast Forest at camp. I don't know what's going on between you two, but I just don't want you to regret your decision."

Tsuyu looked to her feet. "That obvious, huh?"

"Hey, I'm not trying to sit here and play matchmaker," Kirishima joked. "I just... I think you mean a lot to him. And if you don't go, me and Baku-bro will take care of it!"

He clapped Tsuyu on the shoulder, and took off after Bakugou. Asui turned back and looked at Yaorozu's room, hearing Todoroki and Iida argue within.

Had she made the right decision?