Chapter 32: Fatal Games
"There's a difference between playing and playing games. The former is an act of joy, the latter — an act."
― Vera Nazarian, The Perpetual Calendar of Inspiration
Izuku & Ochako
'Dad really does look better.'
His stomach twists for thinking such a thing is so shocking, but for so long he has been used to seeing his Dad's sunken in cheeks and pale white skin and just considered it…normal. For as long as he can remember, time with his Dad has always been a careful balance of him working overseas to having a week vacation in which returns back to Japan. And as of late now, trips are done to a variety of specialists that are from sun up to sun down.
But now he is fresh-faced and energized, blowing a crimson and fuchsia fire for them all to keep the food warm, an act of his quirk and appearance he hasn't seen since early elementary school.
His mind slips back to camping trips, warm nights under a dark sky, the buzz of cicadas, the smell of burning fish stinging his nostrils...
'"Ah Izuku, you need to turn your fish over so it heats evenly! Here let me help" Hisashi chuckles, blowing out a breath of flames scorching the tail end of his carp in black.
"You look great Mr. Midoriya!" Ochako chirps from his side, startling him out of his thoughts.
Hisashi laughs, gesturing for them to sit at the already made table.
"I would hope so Ochako! Because I feel great! Haven't had this much energy in years!" He exclaims proudly, flexing a muscle making Inko snort in laughter.
"Dear stop it, you haven't had proper muscles in years! Probably not since our early days of dating! She snickers.
But it's obvious to both Izuku and Ochako how excited she is to see Hisashi's energy back, jade orbs shining in a mix of joy and love for the man.
He gestures for them to sit, table already set with a mix of their favorites dishes of katsudon, omelette curry, miso soups, and mochi for dessert.
"Ah is it a special occasion?" Ochako guesses as the elaborate colorful display, fighting back the urge to drool. She can't recall even back home of them having such a banquet unless it was for the New Year's or a client had purchased a large amount of their construction materials.
'Is it even okay to eat this? She considers, stomach lightly growling answering for her.
"What did you say the name of this drug company or doctor this was that prescribed this new pill?" Izuku questions, midway through his bowl. It's hard to even enjoy the salt and pepper seasoning of the pork and eggs not knowing what could cause this sudden change in his Dad practically overnight.
"Oh, well it's more like a clinical trial really, it's being kept very under wraps from this new pharmaceutical company I believe called...oh what was the name Dear?" Hisashi pauses, looking to Inko for help.
"Shie Hassaikai I think was the name. The doctor with their system, Dr. Yasuzumi seems to be a leading expert in this growing field of using these pills and supplements to boost not only weakened immune systems like your Father's, but increase the power of one's quirk as well!" Inko chimes in happily.
Izuku drops his chopsticks, Ochako nearly choking on her rice.
The sudden paleness of their expressions makes Inko pause in alarm, looking down to their food.
"What's wrong? Is the food over cooked or over seasoned?! Oh, I knew I should've set the timer for 5 more minutes on the pork or-" She starts.
"No! Everything is perfect. It's, It's just a surprise since Izuku and I hadn't realized that organization was in the healthcare field as well!" Ochako pipes up.
She nudges Izuku beneath the table, bumping their knees to show he feels the same.
"Err, right! Ah, we thought they worked more in policing and crime." He tacks on weakly.
He sets his bowl down, sting of bile swirling up.
Inko's brows furrow, clearly unconvinced. "Are you sure? I don't want you two trying to save me from having hurt feelings if the food is too cold or tastes off in some way. I was a bit more distracted than usual seeing your Father have all this new energy!"
"We're fine Mom, honest! We were just caught off guard is all. What do these pills look like anyways?" Izuku prods, curious now to see what exactly his Father is taking.
'There has to be side effects, there's no way this energy boost could be sustained for a long period of time.' He grits his teeth.
Hisashi moves back from the table to head for his room, returning back with a bottle holding a set of red capsules.
"Taste as bitter as lemons and are as big as my thumb, but they take effect in around 30 minutes to an hour! Dr. Yasuzumi has noted an improvement in my white blood cell, red blood cell, and hemoglobin counts since starting them." He explains.
Ochako leans closer to get a better look at the scarlet pills, each one seeming to shimmer in the overhead lights. "And how long have you been on them now?"
Hisashi taps his head in thought, looking to Inko for help who counts with her fingers. "Maybe 5 days now, your next follow up is on Tuesday which will make a week."
'Melt into my palm.' Izuku studies the pills, blending one with his hand while returning the rest back into the bottle. From a simple touch and feel he can't find anything out of the ordinary, but then Shie Hassaikai wouldn't make the pills look like something strange or off-brand leading to mistrust.
'I'll have Sir Nighteye and his team study this one and go from there.' He decides, forcing on a smile to not make his parent's worry any further.
Though his stomach is swirling too fast to eat any more, to pretend that his palms aren't growing sweaty...
Beneath the table he feels Ochako bump their knees once more and briefly his heartbeat calms, passing her the pill to pocket for now.
Elsewhere-Kai
'Well, this was a waste of my time.' He sighs, adjusting back on his gloves.
Eri shivers beside him, scarlet eyes wide at the horror that lays at their feet. She should be used to seeing blood and body parts by now, perhaps he needs to up her experiments and trials in order to get her to stop making such a face.
But then again, this a more...grisly site than she's used to. Most of his kills are behind closed doors, Eri only seeing the afterwards.
'So much blood and for what? It's clear the League of Villains doesn't see eye to eye with the goals of Shie Hassaikai; it was pointless after all to come here.' He frowns, gazing down at a chunk of skin absently making blonde teen up head bristle in rage.
"What the hell did you just do to Magne?! It's no wonder your stupid fucking organization is falling apart; the old generation is dying because you couldn't handle the rise of the new age of Heroes!" Toga cries out as she flicks out her knife, being held back by her masked associate before she can end up just like her friend.
Magne's blood seeps out towards his feet, stepping back before it can stain at his shoes.
'Disgusting, I can't have her remains ruining my attire any further.' He scowls, rubbing quickly at where her blood has hit his jacket. The smell is nauseating making his skin prickle and burn, hives already starting to pop up in bunches.
He glances down to Eri still frozen in place, a splash of blood and skin intermixed within her ivory locks. Great, it will take hours to get that out of her hair properly, just another thing that will delay them from making more injections and pills.
"She came at me with her magnetism quirk, I was simply defending myself." Chisaki answers Toga back smoothly, her eyes darkening in rage.
Twice looks at the scene in shock, peering wildly back and forth between him and Shigaraki. This isn't what any of them wanted, expected out of this meeting it seems when he first invited him to have a discussion.
His gaze locks back on Shigaraki, golden orbs taking in his bitterness, anger rising fast like a coming storm.
"I thought you had a clear objective in mind on how you would take down the Pro-Heroes you know, it's why I wanted to have this meeting in the first place and show you Eri's abilities. I wanted to show that you all should work under me, having your finances plus rising notoriety on top of my brains is how we'll take down every last Hero once and for all." He remarks.
Tomura cocks his head, puzzlement only serving to further his annoyance.
"You had some of the best of the best villains not too long ago you know from Moonfish, Muscular, even Stain. And yet you somehow wasted all of their potentials and now they've all been arrested under maximum security." He explains.
Crimson eyes regard him silently, hands crackling.
"...What makes you think I would want to work for you when I'm the current leader of The League of Villains? It should be the opposite with you coming to work under us." He voices.
"Shigaraki, we need to get rid of him! He's too much of a danger to us all right now!" Mr. Compress cries out, running forward.
The walls squeal and groan behind him, sighing as the glimmer of a bullet runs across the room striking him in the arm.
'You're all late.' Chisaki clicks his tongue, leaping back as Shigaraki moves in. His hand brushes at one of his subordinates and he watches in a mix of awe and shock as his body turns an ashen gray before crumpling to dust.
'I see, a quirk that works by touch as well.' He muses.
He pulls out one of his business cards from his sleeves, flicking it forward letting it land at Shigaraki's feet.
"It seems like we're not going to get much more accomplished for today so let's continue this discussion another time when we're all cooled down. Plus it gives you a chance to think over what I said. Come on Eri, let's head home for the day." Chisaki relates, tugging roughly at her arm when she remains rooted in place.
Rikiya huffs as they walk through the dark halls, crossing his arms behind his head.
"I didn't get a change to absorb their energy, eh I guess next time." He mutters to himself.
Chisaki half hears him, waving him off to head back to headquarters while keeping his stare focused on Eri.
"We're about to be outside soon Eri, fix that face of yours." He orders, sharpness of his tone making her back stiffen in alert.
She reluctantly accepts his hand, biting her lip as they go into mid-afternoon sunlight. The streets are busy as normal with the approaching evening rush, coral pink of the sky showing just how much time truly has passed.
Act normal; smile.
The two most basic rules he's taught her, especially when our in public.
"Did you have fun at the park today Eri? You learned a lot about Papa's organization and what happens to people who make him mad, right? You wouldn't hurt Papa's feelings like that, would you?" He questions, challenge in his tone.
Tears sit on the corner of her eyes, hiccupping between bursts of her panting and he hopes she won't vomit like before, won't create a scene where he may be forced to use his quirk again.
"Y-Yes, Father I understand. You have a big job to do." Eri whispers out, just loud enough for him to hear.
Chisaki nods, grip tightening making her fingers turn a bruising purple-red.
'That's true, this is a big job indeed.'
Ochako
"Now Ochi, don't go making those police officers or Pro-Heroes jobs any harder than they need to be!" Gamma warns, Gamps trying to poke his head into view of the camera.
Goodnight calls always last an hour, neither wanting to be the first to say goodbye.
A sliver of a half-moon appears in the background, silver light highlighting frazzled dark locks and sunburnt cheeks of a long day.
"I'm not, I swear! But this is important Gamma! There's a little girl who's life is in danger and I can't just be a bystander now that I've seen her condition!" Ochako remarks back.
She thinks back on her earlier conversation with Nishimura and the police force, how little they all know about these pills and how fast apparently they're moving from a black market operation into reputable hospitals, clinics, and assisted living facilities.
"Nishimura, have you ever heard about these types of pills?" Ochako whispers, keeping her voice low to not interrupt commander Miyazawa as he briefs each team on the latest updates of their divisions.
He shakes his head, expression somber recalling Eri's pale look, an acceptance of her cruel reality.
"No, but in all high likelihood that little girl is connected in some way to their creation. Maybe with her quirk somehow I mean you saw that small horn atop her head too, right?" He murmurs back.
The how though is the missing piece of the puzzle.
"Ochi, you still there?" Gamma questions snapping her out of her thoughts and Ochako quickly nods.
"Yes, just thinking Gamma. Izuku and I are working with the Pro-heroes and police departments following protocol." She replies.
Gamps nods his approval, showing off a toothy grin.
"Good, we don't want to see on the news anymore updates of you and Izuku unless it's a marriage announcement down the road!" He teases.
"We need to graduate from U.A. first!" She bellows, only getting snickering in return.
She ends the call flustered, focusing back on how to help Eri.
Just how long has she been trapped with that man? What type of quirks do they have?
She grabs her laptop off her desk, closing out old tabs used for studying for an English quiz from Present Mic earlier in the week, typing in the words Shie Hassaikai.
Her mouse browser spins until the page finally loads, scrolling to the top article.
'All Might and other Pros bring an end to old yakuza clan?!How one man caused a 50 year organization to fall apart.' She reads.
The link takes her to the 'Japan: Then and Now' website, scouring the article for any further details on any of Shie Hassaikai's current members.
It seems nobody has seen or heard from the old boss in months...
A shiver passes over her taking in grotesque images police found of their past victims though, cement stained a copper red, eyes glassy.
"There've been whispers that the group may rise again now with All Might's Retirement and All of One's imprisonment, but most Tokyo and Musutafu residents appear unworried or haven't ever heard of said gang." The main writer Tanigawa goes on.
"Yakuza? Oh, like those biker gangs and manga from the 70s and 80s?! With those gelled back hair and pompadours? We don't have to worry about such things now with quirks and Pro-Heroes around." One girl named Fumue laughs from the interview section.
"Are you concerned any about more villains or petty crimes in the city as you go to and from school with All Might's recent retirement?"
Fumue shrugs, apparently showing off her ground based quirk.
"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little scared, but my quirk allows me to create earthquakes based on my emotion, if I'm afraid I'm sure I can create a strong enough magnitude to get away!" She laughs, finishing out the article.
Ochako sighs, scrolling down to the comments. Most people's thoughts seem to align with Fumue's not to fear an apparent dying yakuza gang of misfits.
She wishes she held their confidence because her stomach is only spiraling with worry.
One comment from a man stood out to her, fear of an uprising that had been immediately downvoted.
'Eri probably feels like that guy, voice unheard through the crowds.' Ochako frowns.
What is her connection to that man? Golden eyes who looked at her piercingly like a possession, an object.
And most importantly, how can she get him away from him?
Katsuki
"Do you give up now Young Bakugo? See that it is pointless to try and defeat me in your current state?" Best Jeanist questions, tapping at his watch mockingly.
15 minutes, that's all he has left.
He chuckles at his lack of an answer, pointing over his apparently drab attire. "It's true sweats aren't my favorite style of clothing to work and aren't as easy to bind. But why do you think I practiced for years on perfecting the weaknesses that come with my quirk?" He voices, gesturing to his bound legs.
Right where he found the stupidest, tiniest piece of fucking fabric he could use to activate his quirk.
"Give up? Your options are quite limited now and the clock is ticking." He gently warns.
Katsuki scoffs, blasting himself upward out of his reach. He doesn't need his legs to attack anyways.
"You wish! I'll be damned if you think I'll just bow and down and admit defeat even if I only have just a minute left!"
His grin widens then, seeing the results of his flames slowly burning at the ground.
In his flurry of attacks he at least hasn't noticed his slow process of melting, more focused on how he'd burned precious cotton fabrics and other materials that were in progress.
Hopefully.
Because finally, a hole is opening up. One that if he times it right he can trap him under and break out of his binding.
"10 minutes. Tick. Tock." Hakamada hums.
Katsuki grits his teeth, hands pulsing in ache from overuse.
This is it, his last shot at getting a win or else...
Or else he'll have to divulge all those ugly truths.
His crackles up a burst of flames until the red-orange blaze shines a bright white-yellow, Hakamada briefly shutting his eyes stepping backwards towards the hole and he pushes his body forward, prepared to slam into him to sever this restraint.
But just as he's within range Hakamada's eyes shine in knowing, the realization of what he's been planning all along and side steps him.
Pain shoots through him like electricity, crashing into a stack of denim jackets and instantly fastened, slammed into the ground.
"...And time. Looks like it's your loss Young Bakugo. Though I assume this isn't your first time experiencing such a feeling." Hakamada muses from somewhere above him.
He lifts up his head to spit out a retort or a scream that he's wrong though his mouth tastes instantly of blood, muscles pounding all over like mini heartbeats.
"Fine, you're right and I'm wrong. Fucking happy now?" He curses as his bindings finally loosen leaving a train of indents along his skin.
Hakamada helps him up, shaking his head. "On the contrary Young Bakugo, I'm upset that you handle losses so...violently."
Katsuki clicks his tongue, following him back towards his office. A deal's a deal no matter how stupid and frustrating he finds it. Even his damn office is filled to brim with clothing memorabilia and supplies, boxes in the corner stuffed with denim jeans and shorts shades of royal blue to light turquoise.
Hakamada clasps his hands together, gesturing for him to start.
"And from the very beginning as promised." He orders.
'The beginning huh, from when I first met Deku or when I realized he wasn't truly quirkless?' He silently questions.
His mind slips back to that summer so long ago, cicadas in the shade of the pine trees, the smell of damp grass and reefs itching at his nose. They'd decided to go to the river to cool off, blue-green waters chilly no matter the time of year.
'"I can't wait until I get my quirk too! I hope it's just as strong as yours!" Izuku beams.
Katsuki shows off a flicker of fire on his fingertips, smirking at his beaming jade orbs.
"Heh, we'll just see about that! You still haven't gotten your quirk yet when everyone else in the class already has, you're going to be behind if it doesn't come before the years end." He teases and warns.
Or perhaps he'll never get one.
Because he sees the flash of worry in his eyes, expression crumpling at the implication beneath his words.
"...I'll get one! Just you wait! It will be telekinesis like Mom's or breathing fire like Dad's! Or maybe a combination of them!" Izuku asserts.
It turned out to be neither of those.
"For the longest time, I've always been the best in my classes from elementary through middle school. My quirk and my grades put me on top. Teachers praised me, my peers envied me. Going to U.A. was inevitable to me. Riding to eventually be on All Might's level." He starts.
Best Jeanist spins his pen, eyes narrowing.
"Ah, praise can easily bring up one's ego. So what changed then?" He questions.
That day at the end of middle school.
He grins sardonically, such a dumb question...
"When Deku broke my freaking hand is what changed, when he looked at me for the first time with rage.
Izuku
"Hmm so this is the pill your Father has been taking, correct?" Sir Nighteye asks.
Izuku nods, watching as he runs his hand over the red tablet slowly taking in it's properties.
"Any particular symptoms?" He finally questions, golden orbs looking up to him.
"Just that it improved his energy and strength. His quirk became stronger too, able to blow out flames large enough to circulate our kitchen." He remarks.
Nighteye nods along thoughtfully, Mirio raising his hand up beside him.
"What about the girl you said Ochako saw? With the white hair? She appeared to be in danger by the man making those pills?" He inquires.
Nighteye holds up a hand before he can speak, pushing up his glasses.
"One step at a time Mirio, we can't rush this when we've received this biggest insight so far into Shie Hassaikai's plans." He relates.
'So what next then? We can't just standby and do nothing.'
Eri is suffering while they sit here and talk.
Nighteye must sense his impatience, yellow meeting his sharpening green eyes.
"All of you don't forget, this isn't just one man we're dealing with here. He has underlings at his beck and call that are as equally dangerous as he. At least 8 of them from the research we've gathered so far." He reviews.
"We can't sit and wait for him to do another attack!" Izuku counters, Nighteye holding a hand up.
"I never stated that we will just 'sit'. No, on the contrary we need to get more information before staging an attack and there is only one way to do that." He explains.
His stare turns piercing on him, goosebumps prickling his skin like a cold wave.
"Infiltration."
-x-
Did any of you read manga chapter 342? No spoilers for any only anime watchers but I was grinning from ear to ear seeing Izuku and Ochako finally talk! I read it at least twice at how cute those two are lol.
Let me know your thoughts as always!
Enjoy. Review. Favorite. Follow!