Beneath the Hero's Mask

Chapter 9

Sae Nijima, Naomasa Tsukauchi, and various staff members of U.A. High School gathered in the conference room to discuss the Villain attack on the USJ. The PSC taskforce had been tracking the League of Villain's activities for months, but their investigation had yet to yield many results. The only useful information they had was the names of their leader and second-in-command, Tomura Shigaraki and Kurogiri. The police swept every government database to find anyone any match registered under those identities with their respective quirks, but the search was not fruitful, which meant they either used aliases or they were living completely off the grid. Nevertheless, a criminal group with the resources to hire an army of Villains and create the Nomu must have had a powerful individual (or potentially group) backing them.

"I see…" Principal Nezu said as the briefing sunk in. "So what is the next step, madame prosecutor?"

"The police will finalise the investigation on school grounds. In the meantime, you need to prepare for the incoming PR storm and damage control. U.A. is going to be under a microscope from now on. People will want someone to blame for letting the Villains sneak it, even if it was just sheer incompetence." Sae responded while looking at Eraserhead, making no attempt whatsoever at disguising her disdain.

"The papers will eat this right up; I can already see the headlines –'U.A. Under Attack: Are our children safe?' –Parents won't be happy..."

"That's not all." All-Might said. "One of the villains recognised young Amamiya as Joker in front of the whole class. I doubt that the students will go around telling everyone about it, but we can't count on the Villains to keep their mouth shut. It's only a matter of time before it reaches the media."

"That is serious. If Amamiya's identity gets out, it will severely affect the perception of our school to the public."

Sae let out a singular dry, sarcastic laugh. "What did you expect when you insist on admitting a wanted criminal into your institution. If you had done the right thing and let me prosecute him like I intended, then you wouldn't be in this situation."

"That's enough!" Eraserhead stood from his seat, drawing the eyes of everyone in the room.

"You can attack me all you want, mock my incompetence or whatever, but I won't let you bad-mouth one of my students. You are still bitter because you missed out on a point for your prosecutor scoreboard; because that's all you care about, isn't it? I thought the goal of the justice system supposed to be rehabilitation. How is that possible without second chances? You've read Amamiya's file, you know what he's been through and you still wanted to lock him up for the rest of his life. Would that have been the right thing? Is that really justice to you? He's not just another one of the low-life criminals you've convicted; he's a good kid that is already trying to make amends. It has nothing to do with you Miss Prosecutor, get over your bruised ego."

Sae and Eraserhead stared daggers at each other while Tsukauchi and the other teachers exchanged awkward glances, too afraid to even draw breath.

"You're right."

Sae finally spoke after what seemed like an eternity. She looked away, her face showed an emotion a less knowledgeable person might have mistaken for shame. "Regardless of my personal feelings, what's done is done. Amamiya has already been processed and sentenced, and is now currently paying his debt back to society. It is not right for me to blame him for that." She said. Her usual intensity returned to her face immediately after. "But make no mistake, the minute Amamiya breaks one single rule, steps out of line one single centimetre, anything that leads me to believe he is anything but the most exemplar student, I'll have him back in handcuffs faster than you can blink." She said while poking the chest of class 1-A's homeroom teacher with her finger.

When the heat of the moment died down, Sae realised that during the argument she had unwittingly closed the distance between her and Eraserhead. She decided to deescalate the situation.

"I'm afraid this is the end of this meeting; I have places to be. Tsukauchi, let's go." She said as she started to walk away.

Tsukauchi followed her steps. "Yes, Miss Nijima. Good day, Principal. We'll keep you updated about any developments on the case."

When she reached the door, Sae stopped for a second and turned around to look at Eraserhead again. "I'll take care of the press and the parents, you take care of your students; they need you now more than ever."

And with those final words, the two investigators finally departed the school. Present Mic nudged his best friend on the side.

"Geez, that woman sure is ferocious… but damn if she isn't a bombshell. Might even be worth risking your life trying to tame that tiger."

Eraserhead chuckled slightly. "I pity the poor bastard that ends up with her. She'll probably bite his head off."

"You're one to talk; you can also bite just as much as you can bark, my friend. That was a roast worthy of Lunch Rush himself!"

Eraserhead pondered over his argument with Sae, especially her reaction. He didn't expect her to be so… civil, and she seemed genuinely sorry for the way she spoke about Ren. Had he misjudged her? Maybe he had been too harsh… although she did threaten to arrest Ren if he was anything less than perfect... He couldn't decipher her, but he did know she had raised a good point.

"She's not wrong, though." He said. "I need to be there for my students. A Villain attack during their very first week of high school, it must have been a very traumatic experience. I can't even imagine the anguish they are going through…"

"Oh man, the USJ incident was awesome! Did you see the news? Everyone is talking about us!" Kirishima exclaimed.

"I know, right? we're basically celebrities." Kaminari added.

In the few days since the USJ incident, the media had already provided thorough coverage of the story. Few were the events that could completely stop the presses around the nation, and a Villain attack on U.A. High School was very high up on that list. TV crews and reporters jumped at the opportunity of an up-close interview with the kids that narrowly survived the attack, granting the students of class 1-A their very own 15 minutes of fame.

"Please, get over yourselves. People only care because the most prestigious Hero school in the world was attacked by Villains. Besides, the news are mainly just talking about one of us…" Jiro said.

Their gaze drifted towards the corner of the room, where Ren had his face buried in his desk.

Just as All-Might had predicted, reports that the infamous Joker was now a student at U.A. High School spread like wildfire, shoving Ren into the spotlight against his will. Once the initial shock of the USJ incident had passes, the Joker news took over the public eye. His name plastered on every front page and in the mouths of every news anchor. The story was generating controversy to unprecedented heights; supporters and critics alike crawled out of the woodwork to give their two cents on the matter. Some parents threatened to pull their kids from U.A. if Ren wasn't immediately expelled, while others commended the push for reintegration.

The unwelcomed attention was getting too much for Ren. He focused on the cold surface of the desk against his forehead, trying to forget about the journalists that were pestering him for a comment, and all the conspicuous whispers that surrounded him on his route to class that morning. In that moment, he felt incredibly envious of Toru's invisibility. Luckily, he was saved from his own racing thoughts by the sound of the classroom door opening.

"Morning, class." Mr. Aizawa said as he walked in.

The class returned the greeting in unison.

"I'm glad to see you all in high spirits. I'm sure you all must still feel a bit shaken by last week's events, but you cannot let your resolve waver, now more than ever, because you're about to face your biggest challenge yet… The U.A. Sports Festival."

The teacher's announcement received a mixed reaction from the students.

"But Mr. Aizawa, are you sure it's a good idea to hold the Sports Festival so soon after the USJ incident?"
"That's right. We're all going to be gathered in one place. Isn't that the best opportunity for the Villains to come back looking for a rematch?"

"The school administration believes this is the best way to show the world that the threat has been taken care off and we're now safer than ever. They are going to be increasing security measures to let the event go on without any setbacks." The teacher explained. "Besides, the Sports Festival is way too important to cancel. It's not merely a friendly exhibition for the sake of sport; The U.A. Sports Festival is one of the most anticipated sporting events of the year, with viewership numbers that dwarfs those of the Olympics. It is the opportunity for U.A. students to make themselves known to the world. There are going to be scouts from the biggest agencies in the country looking for potential new recruits. If you want to make it as a pro Hero, a good performance at the Sports Festival can open a path for you."

Mr. Aizawa successfully ignited the flames of competition in his students, all of whom where now determined to do their best at the festival.

Eventually, the clock struck half past twelve and the bell rung, indicating the start of the lunch break. Izuku invited Ren to have lunch together, but he knew that he'd probably be joined by Uraraka and Ida, the latter of whom Ren was still not on speaking terms with. Not wanting to make things awkward between them, he politely declined the invitation. He picked up his bag and prepared for having lunch alone again in the school's rooftop.

"Come have lunch with us, Ren!"

He heard the voice of Toru call his name, she was joined by Jiro and Tokoyami. He couldn't help but smile, once more reassured that he had friends that would stick with him through this.

"I'd love to." He said.

Toru cheered and wrapped her arms around his elbow. "Awesome! Let's go to the cafeteria."

The four of them arrived at the cafeteria and grabbed a table by the corner of the room. Tokoyami offered to use Dark Shadow to fetch their food, Ren sent Arsène along to aid him. The pair of Quirk-borne entities brought the quartet's meals, who then fell into comfortable conversation.

"…so then I basically just took off my clothes and snuck around. I used the built-in kill switch to power off the robots, which still counted for the score."

"Woah, that's very clever. No offence Toru, but I always wondered how you were able to pass the entrance exam. I had a really hard time against those robots." Jiro said.

"None taken, the exam was certainly not favoured for certain Quirks. It must have been quite easy with a Quirk like yours, Ren."

Ren replied with a shrug. "It probably would have been, but I don't know. I didn't do the entrance exam, I got in with a recommendation."

"Oh, that makes sense. Especially since you are already had so much experience." Toru said.

"Yeah, all the recommended students are so far ahead of everyone else."

"Were there many recommended students this year?" Ren asked

"Well, there are a couple in other classes. In our class there was you of course, and there was Momo as well."

"I'm not surprised, she's brilliant." He said almost instinctively.

"So you like them smart, huh?" Jiro asked with a suggestive smile.

The question caught Ren off-guard as he was eating, he started to choke on his rice.

"Todoroki also got in through recommendation, didn't he?"
"Well, that's to be expected. He's probably been training his whole life to become a pro Hero; he's Endeavour's son, after all."

Ren finally cleared his throat in time to listen to that last bit.

"What? Todoroki is Endeavour's son?" He asked.

"Yeah, you didn't know? I thought it was pretty obvious.

Toru gasped. "Kyoka, you can't just assume two people with fire Quirks are related. That's inappropriate!".

"They have the same family name!"

Ren tuned out the conversation. As it turns out, Endeavour was Todoroki's father. Jiro was right, it was quite obvious. He couldn't believe he hadn't realised it sooner. He frowned as he remembered the last time he had met Endeavour, and then recalled the harsh words Todoroki said to him after the USJ incident.

"Yeah, I can see the resemblance. Not only physically…"

"Well, well, well… if it isn't more class 1-A riff-raff."

Their lunch was interrupted by the uninvited arrival of a boy with slick blond hair. His face bore a smile, but the intent in his eyes was far from pleasant.

"Enjoying your lunch, huh? That's right, just keep enjoying your meals as if nothing ever happened."

The four of them looked at each other with utter confusion.

"Umm… do we know you?" Jiro asked.

"Of course a group of self-absorbed narcissists wouldn't recognise someone from a different class. You are too preoccupied with the media feeding your egos to do anything by yourselves. Honestly, you're lucky the pros got there in time to save you. If class 1-B had been in your shoes, we would've taken care of the Villains without help."

The boy continued monologuing, his smile becoming increasingly deranged.

"Well, I guess you already had a pro with you… isn't that right, Joker?" He said while looking directly at Ren, who shied away at the mention of his former alter ego. "You're not much of a talker, are you? Funny, considering how much people are talking about you. You must be loving it; isn't that the reason you became a vigilante? As a desperate cry for attention? The USJ incident sure has made you the talk of the town, Joker. Isn't that just so convenient…"

Tokoyami stood up from his seat and took a step towards the boy. "I suggest you choose your next words very carefully…" Despite being much shorter, his subtly menacing tone was enough to intimidate the stranger, who backed away slowly.

"Hey, there's no need to get aggressive. I'm just saying, isn't it curious how the Villains just so happened to sneak in while your classwas having rescue training? I wonder why… Maybe you decided to invite some of your fellow criminals to–"

"Shut up, Monoma!"

A redheaded girl snuck behind the blond boy and hit the back of his head with a karate chop. Monoma dropped to the floor, holding his head and wincing in pain.

"Please ignore him; his mouth moves faster than his brain." The newcomer said. "I'm Itsuka Kendo, representative of Class 1-B. I'm very sorry for my classmate's behaviour, I hope you don't think ill of our class because of it."

The girl bowed deeply as an apology.

"Kendo! What the hell are you doing? They are the enemy! You can't –"

Kendo struck him again before he could finish his sentence. "I told you to shut up! Seriously, how many times do I have to hit you before you learn…" She said as she dragged him away by his ear.

"What a weirdo…"

"Totally, how could he say something like that?" Toru said. They all noticed the uneasiness in Ren's face. "Are you okay, Ren?"

Monoma's scene had caught the room's attention; from the corner of his eye, he could see everyone around them staring. A sinking feeling took over his stomach. He needed to get out of there, but he felt bad for abandoning his friends. He quickly cobbled together an excuse to make his escape.

"I'm okay, don't worry. I actually just remembered I had been meaning to check out the school's library to look for a new book. I think I'll head over now before the break is over."

"Are you sure you're okay? We can go with you if you want."

"No, it's fine. Enjoy the rest of your lunch, see you in class."

Ren knew his act was far from convincing, but he did not stay long enough for further questions. He hurried out of the cafeteria, on route to the school library. At least he didn't lie, he had actually recently finished 'The Great Thief' and had been wanting to pick up something new to read; the school library sounded like the best place to find a new book, and hopefully take solace in its silence.

The size of U.A's library was proportional to its status, so Ren had no problem finding a free seat in a secluded table. He left his bag to reserve the spot and directly went to the shelves in the back to seek an interesting read. He browsed the different sections; After a scanning the shelves for a few minutes, in the Western Literature section he came across an eye-catching title, 'Woman in the Dark' . He grabbed the book and quickly skimmed the back-cover, it seemed compelling enough. Satisfied with his finding, he returned to his table and dove straight into the first chapter.

He hadn't even finished reading the second page when the whispers started again.

"Psst. Isn't that the Joker guy over there?"

"Are you sure? He looks a bit too nerdy to be a hardened criminal"

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure it's him. I still can't believe they just let him attend classes with the rest of us. Who knows what he's capable of?"

Ren didn't have to use his Third Eye to register the conversation taking place a couple tables over. He closed the book and took a deep breath; it seemed there was no escaping the rumour mill, not even in the library. Franky, Ren was as irked by the gossiping as much as the complete disrespect for the sanctity of the 'no talking in the library' rule, but there was no point in making a scene. He picked up his belongings and walked to the counter to check out the book; he could continue reading that night at LeBlanc without any interruptions.

He reached the counter and noticed there was no one on the other side. He looked around, but there didn't appear to be any library staff present. He tapped his fingers against the wood as he debated whether he should wait for someone to arrive. That's when he heard a high-pitch voice.

"Good afternoon, Amamiya. How may I help you?"
Ren leaned over the counter and was met with the unexpected sight of principal Nezu.

"Mr. Principal?!" Ren asked. "Uh… what are you doing here?"

"Why, I'm tending to the library. Isn't that obvious?"

The principal's deadpan delivery made Ren question his sanity for a second. "Are you… the school's librarian?"

"Only temporarily." Nezu replied. "The old librarian retired recently, and since my duties as principal are mostly administrative, I've offered to cover the position until a replacement is found."

"Well, that's nice I guess…"

"Oh, not at all. I actually hate this job with fervour." The talking rodent said. "All the shelves are too high for me to reach, restocking the books is quite the hassle. Have I told you how boring it is too? there's not even a single manga in this whole library!"

"That's, uh… unfortunate."

"Indeed. We've been having some troubles finding the right candidate to fill in the librarian position. Given U.A.'s prestige, we can't just take anyone off the street. There's not much we can do for now, in the meantime I'm happy to help." He said. "I presume you want to check out this book; here, let me get it for you."
Nezu had a look at the book and started filling the check-out form on the computer. Ren watched him work, mesmerised. Seeing the principal typing away with his little paws was staggeringly adorable.

While he waited for the principal to finish, Ren felt a poke on his shoulder. Another wave of irritation started brewing in him; he turned around expecting to find another Monoma-like individual looking for a confrontation, but instead found a familiar head of fluffy, light auburn hair.

"Haru?" Ren asked, extending the feeling of surprise that had yet to leave him.

"Hi, Amamiya. I haven't seen you much around school since we last met."

"Yeah, I've been a bit busy..."

Awkward silence arose between them, Ren wasn't quite sure of what to say. Lucky for him, Haru spoke first.

"I'm sorry."

"Sorry for what?"

"I saw on the news what happened to your class at the USJ. That must have been very frightening."

"Don't worry. It was a bit, but no one was seriously hurt. Everything turned out fine in the end."

"That's a relief." She said. She twiddled her thumbs nervously, as if planning on the best way to broach an uncomfortable topic. "Umm, there's something else too… Would you mind going somewhere more private to talk?"

Haru and Ren sat on a bench next to the courtyard behind the library. The area did not see many visitors during lunch break, it was an ideal place to talk in private. Ren observed his surroundings, he hadn't been in that part of school before. He saw a small flower garden nearby. He leaned in to look a bit closer and spotted two small turtle-like machines going around the flowers. One appeared to be watering the plants, while the other was trimming the dead leaves and stems.

"Another one of your gadgets?" Ren asked

Haru shrugged. "After I was done with the roof, I thought other parts of the school could use a retouch too." She said bashfully.

Ren was impressed by Haru's invention, but he was even more impressed by her selflessness. She had created multiple incredible machines and gave them away with no ulterior motive, simply wanting to improve her school.

"So…" He said. "What did you want to talk about?"

"I just wanted to say that I have… I've heard the rumours going around about you…"

Ren flinched; he could imagine what Haru was about to say. And he couldn't blame her, some of those rumours really painted an ugly picture of him. He braced himself for what was coming.

"And I'm sorry you find yourself in this situation. I know how hard it can be to be the subject of rumour and having people talking about you behind your back. Don't let other people get you down."

Ren did a double take, unsure whether he had heard her right. Not only was she not repulsed by him, but she was comforting him. He found it hard to understand how someone as kind and sweet as Haru could have people spreading malicious rumours about her. She had probably been through a lot on her own to sympathize with someone like him.

"It's okay. I did feel hopeless at first, but thanks to my friends I have been able to carry on." He said with a smile. "Friends like you, Haru."

Haru tried to return the smile, but it just came out weakly. "To be honest, I really admire you, Amamiya. It must have taken a lot of courage to risk everything and follow your heart by becoming a Vigilante to help people."

She sighed and stood up from the bench. She turned her back to Ren to stare blankly into the distance.

"You know, when I was little, I wanted to be a Hero…"

He was surprised by her confession. Haru didn't seem like the Hero-fangirl type. "Really?"

"Yes. It's a bit childish but I always thought that dedicating your life to helping others was the most noble thing one can do. Eventually I realised that with my Quirk it would be impossible for me to become a pro Hero. But even then, I didn't want to give up on my dream. That's why I started to learn how to make support items, hoping that one day I could use them to support Heroes and indirectly help people." She said, the melancholy ringing loudly in each one of her words. "My grandfather was an engineer specialised in support items; not really anything Hero related, mainly lifestyle support items. He had a small workshop in town, where people would come in and share their issues. Then my grandfather would get working on a gadget that could help them. He never charged anyone a single cent; he was only interested in helping his community. I'd sometimes stay over at his workshop and watch him work. He'd tell me about the items he made and explain to me how they worked. After I showed interest in inventing, he started letting me help with minor tasks, and he taught me how to use the tools and workshop equipment."

She sat back down on the bench and hugged her knees into her chest.

"After my grandfather passed away, I wanted to continue on his legacy by making support items of my own, but my father didn't approve. He said that the trade was unbecoming of a girl like me. He forbade me from working with any sort of tech, and when I came of high-school age he made me enrol in U.A.'s business course. I really wanted to protest, to speak up against his orders, but I just couldn't do it. I guess not everyone can be as brave as you…"

Haru finally faced Ren again, and what he saw almost broke his heart. Her characteristically cheery smile had been sequestered and replaced by a disconsolate frown, she seemed to be on the verge of tears. A girl like Haru didn't deserve to ever feel this way, he needed to do something about it.

"But I'm not brave Haru. I've been afraid for so long, there were many times where I came close to giving up. The only reason I am still standing here is because of the people that have supported me through the hard times." He said as he took her hand in his. "And now it's my turn to support you."

Haru was taken aback by the sudden contact, which proved enough to momentarily distract her sorrow.

"Haru, you should participate in the upcoming Sports Festival. Representatives from all the major support item companies will be there; Sigma, Detnerat, and even Okumura Corp. It's the perfect opportunity to show off your inventions and let them know what you can do! You're amazing, Haru. They'll probably even offer you a transfer to the Support course."

"My father would never approve…"

"You should invite your father to the festival as well. I'm sure when he sees how talented you are and how much it means to you, he will change his mind."

Haru shook her head and let go of Ren's hand.

"But I'm just a Business course student, how can I measure up against the students from the Hero course? or even those that are actually in the Support course? My Quirk is completely useless, I –"

Ren grabbed her by the shoulders to prevent her from losing it. "That doesn't matter, Haru. You've got the heart of a Hero and the mind of a genius. I'm confident that you can devise an invention to leave them all in the dust."

Haru finally eased her shoulders and Ren released her. She looked him right in the eyes and saw nothing but sincerity. She had met many people in her life who tried to use sweet-talk looking to gain something from her, but Ren didn't care about any of that. He had known her for less than a week and he was comforting her just because he didn't want her to feel sad. She felt joy, but it was tainted by bittersweetness; she tried to remember the last time her father had done anything like this for her.

"Thank you so much, Amamiya. I think you just told me things that had been on my mind for a long time. I just needed to hear them from someone who actually believed them."

"It's my pleasure. I'll always believe in you, that's what friends are for. And please, just Ren is fine; I already call you by your first name." He said. "Now that I think about it, I don't think I ever caught your family name…"

Haru quickly changed the subject. "Aright then, Ren. I'm looking forward to facing you at the Sports Festival." She offered her hand at him.

"The feeling is mutual." He accepted the handshake. It was then that the that another question popped into his head. "By the way… you never actually told me what your Quirk was."

Haru started fidgeting nervously. "Uh, well…. It's a nothing worth mentioning, really. It's a bit silly…"

"Come on, you're being too modest. Besides, you already know mine. I think it's only fair you show me yours."

After hesitating for a few seconds, she exhaled, which Ren took as a sign of acceptance.

"Could you turn on your phone's flashlight?" She asked.

Ren pulled out his phone and did as she asked. Haru pointed her index finger at the light source, she flicked her finger, and the flashlight went out. She then turned around and pointed her finger at a nearby lamppost; she flicked her finger once more, and the lighting atop the pole shone brightly. She the repeated the motions in reverse order, returning the light to Ren's phone.

Ren's sight switched back and forth between the lamppost and his phone before finally stopping on Haru. "Wow, you can absorb and release light?" He said incredulously.

"I told you it was silly."

"Not at all, Haru. It's actually very cool."

She took the compliment reluctantly and smiled. "I guess. It's not as cool as summoning your own demonic minions, though." She said jokingly.

He laughed. "That's true, not everyone can be as cool as me."

She giggled as well. "Maybe you should try being modest too."

They kept on joking and laughing until the end of the break; Haru's sadness now merely a ghost of the past. Ren was happy he was able to do for someone else what his friends had done for him. Helping Haru through her distress also helped him cope with his own, and now he felt invigorated and eager to give it his all at the Sports Festival. He was beginning to think that the power of friendship wasn't so ridiculous after all.