After a few hours of their discussion with the former overlord, Toshinori, Mirai, and Sorahiko felt that they were satisfied to where their had conversation headed to- most notably, how their surveillance of Hisashi would go.
It was decided that Mirai would be the one to monitor the villain full-time. He will be setting up base in the family's manor and would be given his own office next to Hisashi's study so he could still fulfill his job as All Might's sidekick even from the Midoriya household.
Toshinori and Sorahiko would also pay visit at random times as well in between their hero duties, but most of the surveillance responsibility was to be left to Mirai.
And if Mirai ever feels like Hisashi was up to something, he was free to use his Quirk on the former villain, or anyone at all in the manor, granted that they felt comfortable about Mirai doing so.
As for the excuse for Mirai moving into the home that they would be telling the matriarch and their sons, Hisashi had suggested the idea of Mirai getting kicked out of his old apartment and Toshinori being the one to ask him to let Mirai live there. It was reasonable enough to believe, and knowing his wife well, Hisashi knew Inko wouldn't say no to a situation like it.
With all parties agreeing to it, it was decided that Mirai would begin moving in the next day, after Hisashi has informed his family and had the sidekick's room and office set up, which meant the green-haired sidekick would have to rush packing his belongings in only a few hours.
Right now, the three heroes were being escorted by Adohira, the family's light blue-skinned chauffeur to the household's dining room for dinner. The heroes had initially denied the former villain's offer to pay back the trouble of coming over, but he was somehow able to make them agree. Though their main reason for agreeing was their curiosity about what kind of food they would be served, considering how lavish everything else in the Midoriya 'house' has been.
But as the three heroes and the chauffeur continued to walk through the manor's main hallway, they managed to come upon the household's youngest lord with a small bouquet of sparkling orchids in his small hands.
He was talking to two maids who were each carrying a bin of velvet sheets.
"I'm really sorry about earlier, Aoi-neesan, Millie-neesan. I should have thought more about my actions. I'm really sorry for troubling you." The small greenet apologized as he gave a full 90º bow.
"Aah! Young Master Izuku, it's really nothing!" One of the young maids cheerfully told the young child, "Now that it's over, it was actually really fun. Kinda like riding a roller coaster, you know?"
"Mhm. It was fun getting to see the young master demonstrating his Quirk on us, especially since we only ever see you using your Quirk from afar." The other maid added, "So there's no need to apologize, young master. Please don't bow to us."
"S-still!" Izuku insisted with an embarrassed look on his face as he straightened his posture and looked back up at the maids, "A-at least... do you accept my apology and my apology flower?"
"Hm? Apology flower?" The two maids asked in sync.
"Y-yes. I read that orchids symbolize sincerity and are good as apology flowers, so I... made some fabric orchid flowers." Izuku sheepishly answered.
"Oh! Is that what those are?" One maid sounded genuinely surprised, "We've been seeing those flowers with a bunch of people since earlier and we thought they were really pretty. So the young master made them yourself?"
"M-mhm." Izuku hummed his answer.
"Oh, in that case, then we'll accept it with all our hearts!" The first maid, Aoi, happily told her young master.
"Yes, you can place them on the top of the bins we're holding, young master." The second maid, Millie concurred.
Izuku's eyes sparkled in joy, and with a smile on his face, he happily gave a suggestion, "I have a better idea!"
Izuku's eyes gave off the same emerald glow as they did earlier and the small greenet began to float and reach the two maids' eye level. The two girls were confused, but they stood still and left it up to their young master. The greenet then floated closer to the two maids, and on each of them, he gently placed an orchid in their ears as he pushed their hair back.
"There. They should stay tucked in place until you two are done for the day." Izuku smiled proudly at the two maids as he floated back to the ground, "I hope you like them!"
With wide eyes, the two maids slowly looked at each other and at the orchids placed in each other's hair, and they couldn't help but blush at their young master's gesture.
"T-they really are pretty, Young Master Izuku!" Aoi practically squeaked out in a fluster while Millie just nodded her head in agreement, "We'll surely treasure them forever!"
"W-we're gonna go back to our jobs now!" Millie said in a fluster as well, "We'll see you around, young master!"
After that, the two young maids ran off, leaving Izuku feeling happy that they liked his gift and unaware of the effect his little gesture had on them.
Izuku then looked down at the orchids in his hands and counted them, Four more.
With a smile on his face, the small greenet was about to take a step to look for the four remaining people he still had to apologize to, when he met face-to-face with the three heroes he had been wishing to see again since that morning.
A huge look of awe immediately painted the little boy's face and his eyes seemed to sparkle so brightly as they saw his father's guests, and he immediately began jumping up and down in excitement.
"A-All Might! Sir Nighteye! Gran Torino! H-hello again!" The small greenet greeted the three heroes as he gave them a 95º bow.
"It's you, kid," Sorahiko greeted him, "Izuku, right?"
Izuku immediately straightened his posture, "Y-yes! My name is Izuku! Nice to see you again, Gran Torino!"
The small greenet couldn't even hold back his smile as he was being addressed by his idol's own mentor.
Seeing this whole thing in front of them, Sorahiko and Mirai immediately felt the awkwardness and confusion Toshinori had felt the first time he met this little kid. To think that this green-haired hero fanboy is actually All for One's son, it was a complete reversal.
"Nn. Good to see you again too, kid. You were really good with your Quirk earlier." Sorahiko could only say, only because he didn't know what else to say to the greenet.
Izuku's eyes seemed to sparkle even more as he was praised by the veteran hero, "T-thank you very much, Gran Torino! I-I've been working really hard!"
Despite the greenet's enthusiasm, a slight awkward silence still followed between the heroes and the small kid, as the heroes couldn't think of anything else to say to the former villain's child. And they couldn't help but feel bad for letting down the kid in front of them.
Finally, Adohira spoke up, breaking the silence, "Young Master Izuku, Master's guests are currently heading to the dining room, so we'll have to excuse ourselves for now. You still have something else to do, correct?"
"Ah!" Izuku exclaimed, "Yes! I have four more people to apologize to."
"It-it was really nice to see you again," Izuku once again gave a 90° bow to the heroes, "I hope I see you again around."
Izuku then straightened his posture and was about to run to the other direction from Adohira and the heroes when Toshinori suddenly spoke up.
"Actually, I'm going to stay behind for now. I'd like to talk a bit with your young master." Toshinori told the light blue-skinned chauffeur.
Izuku's eyes went wide as they sparkled from what he heard, though Adohira's eyes squinted slightly, "Are you sure about that, All Might? I assure you, this household is every bit of a maze for anyone who doesn't live here. Will you be able to find your way to the dining room afterwards?"
"Yes. I'll be fine," Toshinori practically guaranteed his return, "And if I end up getting lost, I'll still have Young Izuku here to accompany me. Isn't that right, boya?"
Toshinori looked over to the young greenet, causing him to immediately tense up, but still he looked back at his family's chauffeur and aggressively shook his head yes.
"I-I've memorized each and every room in the house, and I know the fastest way to every single one of them! I will definitely bring All Might to the dining room really quickly!" Izuku assured the chauffeur as a plea to let his idol stay with him.
Adohira furrowed his brows at his young master- something that none of the other servants would even dare think, let alone do- before finally relenting, "Very well, young master."
"Torino-san, Sasaki-san, let us continue heading over to the dining room. Right this way." The chauffeur told the remaining heroes as he ushered them.
Good luck, Sorahiko and Mirai only wished to Toshinori in their minds as they walked away.
Once the two heroes and the chauffeur rounded a corner and disappeared from their vision, Toshinori and Izuku began to walk, and the Pro Hero finally talked to the little boy, "So what do you have there, boya?"
Ah, I called him boya again. Toshinori just realized.
Izuku tensed up as he looked up at his idol, "T-they're fabric orchids, All Might! I made them as gifts to everyone I ended up bothering earlier."
"Y-you made them?" Toshinori sounded genuinely surprised, "Did you just make them today? While we were talking to your father?"
"Mm-hmm," The little greenet hummed yes but then he became despondent as he pouted, "But I had to rush them so they're not as perfect as they should be for apology flowers. Everyone seems to really like them, but I think that they're not as good because I haven't been practising."
"What are you talking about, boya? They look amazing! You said you made them for everyone that got caught in the incident earlier, right? If you include everyone that was also on the sixth floor, that would mean you'd have to make at least 25 flowers! You made 25 of that within a few hours?! That's impressive, boya!"
Ah! Boya stuck! Toshinori realized.
Izuku's green irises sparkled as he was praised by his idol, and he spoke without thinking, "T-thirty, actually, All Might..."
"That's even more amazing!" Toshinori couldn't hold in his surprise.
Izuku just looked up at his idol as his mouth was agape, and without realizing it, his eyes had started to tear up, causing the Pro Hero to suddenly panic.
"B-boya! W-why are you crying all of a sudden?! Was it something I said?! Please don't cry!" Toshinori kneeled in front of the small child as he tried his best to calm the now tearing child down, but at that moment, Toshinori suddenly felt cold slither up his spine as he felt multiple glares head his way- the most notable one coming from a location where they shouldn't even be visible!
"Y-young Izuku, please don't cry, alright? I'm really sorry." Toshinori apologized to the small greenet as a last resort, but Izuku just looked at him confused.
"W-why are you apologizing, All Might? I'm really happy, you know." Izuku told the Pro Hero with a huge smile on his face.
"Hearing you praising me, getting to meet you in person, and having you in our house, it made me really happy. It's more than I've ever wished for!" The small greenet cheerfully told his idol as he began wiping his tears away with the back of his hands, "I've been a really big fan since I can remember!"
What the little boy said made Toshinori take pause, and he immediately remembered all the things he thought about the little boy when they had first met.
Toshinori was afraid of the little boy, he was disturbed and unnerved by him- he even thought of horrible things about him, all because he was All for One's son, when this whole time, the little boy was excited and practically jumping over the moon to get to meet Toshinori.
The little boy in front of him is a pure and bright soul, but all Toshinori saw was the shadow that gave fruit to him... and if he had continued to think and see him that way, then he would've inevitably become the person to snuff out that brightness.
Toshinori was truly sorry to the small child.
"Boya," Toshinori referred to the small child again, "Earlier, your brother was talking about all the things a hero should and shouldn't be or do... does that mean that you're planning to become a hero someday?"
Izuku's eyes immediately lit up with excitement and he confirmed Toshinori's suspicion, "Yes! Yes! I want to become a hero!"
"I want to be a hero just like you, All Might! I want to be a Pillar of Peace! A light to everyone! It's my dream!" The small greenet continued, "I'm going to enroll to UA High, and I'm going to be a hero as great as you!"
Toshinori's eyes went wide as he listened to the little boy's declaration, and as he was filled with a mixture of emotions for the little boy.
He was proud for the little boy, that despite being All for One's son, he was still resolute in becoming a hero, and he was genuinely excited to watch him grow and see the type of person he will be. But at the same time, he was afraid for the little boy.
What if he learns that he's the son of a villain? And not just any villain, but All for One, the one who plunged Japan into an era of darkness at the dawn of Quirks? How would he take that? There's no doubt that it would deeply affect him and his dream. And what if the rest of the world learns of his lineage? What if the world decides- just like did when he first met Izuku- that he is just as bad as his father? That he's destined to be a villain just for being All for One's son? What if the world decides to discard Izuku and snuff out the light in his eyes?
-no.
No. Toshinori would never let that happen. Not on his watch.
Toshinori scooped up the greenet's tiny hands with his own, surprising the little boy.
"Young Izuku," Toshinori referred to the little boy, and in a solemn tone, he made an oath, "I promise that I will see to it that you become a hero. I will watch you grow into the hero you are destined to be. You will become a hero fitting of the title The Next Symbol Of Peace, and you won't just be a hero as great as me, you will be even greater."
"I give you my word." Toshinori vowed to the little boy.
He will nurture the hero-hopeful in front of him, and he will protect him from anybody who would dare hurt him. And as long as he's alive, he won't let Izuku or the world know about his father's true identity.
