"Where is your lieutenant commander?" asked Nezu.

"Holding down the fort in my absence," Nejire replied, lying. Is he smart enough to see through me?

The moment they'd gotten back to UA, Tamaki had asked for her to cover for him in the meeting with the principal, and had run off somewhere, looking awfully excited. Nejire was not dumb. He and Nova are starting something. Well, good for him. At least they were even now, in terms of covering for one another's…irresponsibilities.

The difference was that Tamaki was getting something actually nice out of it. Her own exploits consisted of almost dying while trying to keep up with a masked lunatic and falling for him in the process. And said masked lunatic too busy to care.

"Well, proceed with the report." If Nezu suspected, he gave no indication.

"We captured eleven criminals. Seven claim alignment to the Harbor while four others refuse to say who they work for. We need a truth Quirk."

The principal took notes. "I may not be able to provide Detective Tsukauchi or anyone else until next week."

"That's alright. We did get one piece of information out of one of them - they came from a place called the Company Town. We're not sure what that is."

Nezu frowned. "Hmm. Why did one of them talk when the other three did not? And just that one detail?"

"Umm…that didn't come from our official questioning. It was something Deku found out from the man at the crime scene, right after capturing him. The man fainted shortly after."

"Deku was involved? Where is he now?"

"I don't know," Nejire half-lied. She assumed he was still back at their base, but he could have decided to leave.

"So the explosives were not recovered."

"Deku said they vanished from the trunk of one of the cars. He thinks that they somehow got to Mustard. According to him, the video that Mustard made, the one he found at the Ketsubutsu bombing, had the numbers five and fourteen in it. At Kijimi we had our own separate lead on the arms deal, but Deku thinks that Mustard wanted us to be there to throw us off."

Nezu leaned forward. "I was told of this video by Detective Tsukauchi. He said the only people who saw it were the detective himself, his most trusted men, Deku…and another hero, whose name I forget."

He doesn't forget things. I'm being tested! "Maboromicamie. She's a Shiketsu student."

"So she is." Nezu sipped his tea. "Have you seen her lately?"

"She…was…at the arms deal…" Nejire squeaked. "She helped us. How is this relevant, sir?"

He shrugged. "I just want to ensure I am receiving the full picture from your report, commander. You would have no reason to hide things from me, I assume."

"I…" Nejire tilted her head down, her face falling into shadow. Her hands folded over her lap.

"You can trust me, Hado. You know that, right? I am fully capable of discretion if the situation calls for it." Nezu's smile became somehow gentler. "Yesterday, Midoriya's class visited my office. They demanded to be led to him so that they could help him. They are convinced he is on a path of self-destruction. I did not mention you by name, but I told them that Midoriya has plenty of support. I assume that this is true. That my faith in you, and in your support of Deku, our lynchpin, is not misguided."

"I'm…supporting him?" She laughed, unable to help herself. "It's more like he's supporting me." Her voice was hushed. "We wouldn't have gotten this far in Kijimi without him."

"But you seem tense, my dear."

"I just…I'm worried about him. I don't think he's on a path of self-destruction, well, maybe he is, but…" Nejire's lip trembled. Her brain was overloaded. She began to spill. "I'm worried because I've seen what he faces out there all the time and it really scared me, even though I'm two years older than him and should have more experience, and how can I support him if I'm too afraid to go places where he'll go? And I made a promise to Ochako that I'd bring him back if I ever saw him and not only have I not done that, but I can hardly protect myself. I almost died because of a guy who wants revenge on me for blinding the Skindancer-"

"Akira Asano?"

"Ah, uhh…yes. How did you…?"

"You used your student login to access our records, which I can see from here." Nezu patted his closed laptop. "Considering Asano is the most dangerous Harbor criminal we have yet to capture, I could only assume it was him. Do you regret your decision to blind her?"

"I…don't know…"

"I just want to make sure that guilt isn't the thing making you worried, my dear."

"No, it's not that, it's just…" It's all the responsibility you've given me. But she could not say that. "There's a lot on my plate," she finished, lamely. "Deku wants to find Mustard before he can target UA. I also want that. But the core of Hojo power is still at large in Kijimi, and I feel like if I push too hard…"

"You will further expose yourself to Asano, or perhaps Deku's enemies. Many of whom may inevitably be drawn in, if he performs many more feats like the one he pulled on the highway."

Nejire gaped. "How do you know about that? Do you know everything? Is every question you ask me just a test? Do you-" As quickly as her jaw had dropped, she closed it.

The principal laughed. "No, not every question! But I do know more than I let on, I'll admit. And, with that knowledge, I can safely say that…" He leaned in closer. "You can do this, Nejire Hado. I am concerned about Mustard, mostly about how knowledge of him has spread through our shelter and the negative effect that has on civilian morale…but I have every confidence that he will be caught, whether you support Midoriya in that pursuit or not. And you can defeat the Hojos, too. This is all in your power."

"I…want to believe that…"

"Good. Because I'm about to give you some concerning news." Nezu flipped his laptop open. "At our last meeting I explained how few of the Kijimi civilians - that is, those on the local census with no criminal record - are left unaccounted for. Most are here in our shelter now. But…since that meeting, I've done some data analysis and talked to a few of them, and there is…a hole."

"A…hole, sir?"

"A discrepancy. A rather large one." Nezu turned the laptop around for Nejire to view the data. "You see, I assumed that if we took the Hojo workforce away and evacuated the place, that would effectively cripple them. After all, of the two criminal entities, the Hojos have always been more internal, relying on the business of Kijimi itself. And so…we did that. Kijimi is now mostly empty. But not entirely by our doing. A sizable percentage of those who should have been evacuated are simply…missing. Vanished. And we do not know where they are. Meanwhile, the Hojos appear to be as afloat as ever, financially speaking." He pointed to another part of the data on the screen. "Some kind of protection plan? Did they begin to operate more like the Harbor, doing external business that is further from UA? Or…are these two things related somehow?"

"You suspect the Hojos have a bunch of people kidnapped somewhere," said Nejire. "Like the Skindancer's casino."

"Likely not for sexual purposes, if that is what you fear. But…yes. It's a working theory. As commander, I would like you to look into it. Once you figure out this discrepancy, and apprehend the core of Hojo power…the work in Kijimi is essentially done."

Nejire took a deep breath. She could see the scope of all her tasks laid out before her. They were countable, and limited, which was comforting, but none of them were at all easy, which was less comforting.

"Alright, sir. I'll look into it. May I have a copy of that data?"

"I'll send it to your field computers. We managed to get a cable running."

"Okay. I'll see it back at base, then. Thank you." She awkwardly half-stood up from the seat, waiting to be dismissed.

Nezu blinked at her. "That will be all, Hado."

She left the office.

Now to find Amajiki. That is, if he isn't tongue-deep in Nova's…

Nejire made a disgusted face as she walked down the hall, and pouted. It simply defied all logic that he would be the one she had to pry away from here, not the other way around.

I should be happy that he might have a girlfriend. It was just…she'd never had a boyfriend. Not a proper one anyway. And Mirio had dated someone seriously before, too, meaning she was officially the least experienced of the three of them.

She turned a corner and went out into the big courtyard, the massive fortress wall looming in the distance. Gravel crunched beneath her boots. It was wrong of me to think of Midoriya as a lunatic. Or that he doesn't care about me. He clearly did. He'd shared a meal with her. He'd gotten her medicine. He even listened to her sometimes, when he didn't listen to other people. But maybe she was just seeing patterns that weren't there. He sees caring about people as his profession. I'm not special.

Nejire couldn't help but wonder how it had gotten to the point where Iruka had made out with him. Who had initiated? I guess I could ask her.

But she had to find Tamaki. I'm going to get to the fortress wall and then call him, so then I can honestly be like, yo, I'm at the fortress wall, hurry up, and he'll panic and speed out here like his feet are on fire.

"Nejire-chan."

She stopped cold.

That was not a voice she wanted to hear right now.

Nejire Hado turned.

The entirety of Class A was standing there.

Some were costumed, others were not, as if they'd come together as a group in something of a hurry. None of them looked happy. Fifteen yards of courtyard space separated her from them.

Ochako was the one who had spoken. "We need to talk," she said, stepping forward from the front. Her eyebrows were furrowed.

Nejire's eyes darted to the margins of the area. There were many civilians hanging out in the courtyard, and now they were watching what was happening, their eyes drawn to the bright colors of the hero costumes and the large clump of people.

"Okay," she responded, carefully. "Why don't we do that inside? So that we, you know, don't cause a scene or anything?"

"You can't weasel your way out of this. You lied to us."

But the principal said he didn't mention me by name. "I don't know what you're talking about." Nejire swallowed her panic down.

"Lying again, ribbit." Tears were forming in the corner of Tsuyu's eyes.

Todoroki stepped up. "We talked to the principal and heard that Midoriya had someone supporting him, but he wouldn't tell us who. Then I found out from my mother that he'd been at the hospital when my brother attacked. Of course, earlier, I had heard from my siblings that you were at that hospital. You and Amajiki-senpai."

Nejire's jaw tightened. How could I have expected this to all stay quiet? Every action she and Tamaki and Midoriya had done, they had saved people. And those people, without fail, came back here. How could she have been so stupid? "I don't see what this proves," she forced herself to say.

"What are you protecting, Airhead?" Bakugo snarled, breaking in-between Ojiro and Sero to step in front of the whole group. "We know every word out of your mouth is complete bull, so why are you wasting your time?"

"Todoroki came to me, so I went to Togata-senpai," said Iida. His face was sharp as a blade. "He refused to tell me anything, so I knew that we were being lied to. Again."

"Iida brought this matter to all of us." Yaoyorozu. "And we, as a class, spoke with everyone that we knew of who'd been whispering about you and Amajiki-senpai. Everyone who had information on your exploits."

"The sex workers. The hospital people. The tall girl with the pointy ears, though she would not tell us anything," said Tokoyami. "We spoke with them all, and not all of them had seen Midoriya at the places they'd been…but many of them had. They'd seen Midoriya working with you."

"You told me that you hadn't seen him," Kirishima cried, his voice breaking. "You told us that you had no idea where he was!"

"You promised you'd bring him back," Ochako hissed, in a raised voice. A good deal of people were gathering now. Murmurs and whispers abounded in the courtyard.

Nejire closed her fist. Her nostrils flared. "Yeah," she said, defiant. "I did say that. I said that ages ago, before I'd seen him, back when I didn't understand what it's like out there. Back when I was like you."

Bakugo growled, and stalked another step forward, his palms flashing. "Grrr, you think we don't understand-"

"YOU DON'T!" bellowed Nejire, throwing her arms out from her sides in a canceling gesture. Her Quirk released without her permission, small yellow spirals bursting from her hands in fury. "I made that promise, yeah. And I've lied to you since then. I shouldn't have lied. But that doesn't change the fact that what everyone is trying to do here is to keep you from doing something stupid."

"Is it stupid to want to help a friend in need, ribbit?" Tsuyu demanded.

"I would say it's stupid to run off by yourself and leave your friends with nothing but a note as an explanation!" Todoroki snarled. His left side was smoking. Yaoyorozu had drawn up her arm as if she intended to pull a tool from it, and Ojiro's tail flicked.

A laugh escaped Nejire's throat. "Oh, so what are you guys going to do, then? Fight me? Try and go out there yourselves? Even if you manage to find Midoriya, he won't come back with you. I didn't bring him back because it wasn't my place to make that decision for him, and it's not your place either!"

"You talk like you know him better than we do!" Ochako accused.

"MAYBE I DO!" Nejire threw in the brunette's face, and she couldn't help but feel a little of that poisonous satisfying spite at the shocked expression that struck the younger girl. "In the past month, I have been through more with Izuku Midoriya than any of you could dare imagine. I have been through more in general than any of you could dare imagine. MIDORIYA has been through more in general than any of you could dare imagine. You are all good heroes, great ones even, and have had your share of fights and battles, but you are not needed out there. If you go out into Japan now, it will eat you alive. You are needed here, and so here you'll stay." She could not wait for Tamaki now. Nejire activated her Quirk and floated up off the ground, preparing to fly up over the barrier and away from them. She just needed to get away from them.

Sero's tape wrapped around her ankle.

Nejire looked down, stunned. "Don't do this, you morons," she admonished them, but then Tsuyu's tongue was there, then some rope from Yaoyorozu. Constricting her. Slowly yanking her back down.

"Come back down, Hado-senpai. We aren't finished talking to you."

Some civilians had begun to flee. Others were shouting for help. Still others, the ones with working phones, were filming the confrontation. Nejire had to fight back an eyeroll, despite her growing panic.

"You can't keep Midoriya away from us!" cried Ashido, thrusting an accusing finger.

Dark Shadow arose from Tokoyami. "Sorry, pretty lady," the Quirk rasped, and went for an oppressive swipe at her in the air…

Nejire blasted the thing back with a backswing of her left arm, her spirals bursting out laterally. SHOOOOOOOOOO! Dark Shadow cried out, shying away from the light.

"You can't fight all nineteen of us, Airhead!" Bakugo cackled, preparing to take off up toward her as she fought to fly higher. "We'll beat you!" He was, of course, one of the ones already in costume.

Nejire did not back down from his fierceness, nor his eye contact. "Maybe. But you can't beat Midoriya. And that's what you'll have to do, right? When you go out there? He doesn't want to come back with you. You'll have to try and force him, and he will kick your ass."

"You overestimate the damn nerd almost as much as he overestimates himself! Todoroki and I have been keeping up with him this whole time! And the others aren't far behind, either!"

"YEAH!" Jirou and Kaminari echoed.

"We're keeping up with him!" Ochako declared.

Most of the Class was running - or flying - toward her now. Bakugo was closing in.

Nejire felt her frustration boil over. "NO…YOU'RE…NOT!"

As Bakugo's explosion came at her, she threw two punches at the air, forming an awkward, half-ruptured spiral blast at close range. It rebounded the explosion. KA-BOOOOOOOOOOM!

Bakugo went flying back, tumbling over in the air, stunned.

Gasping, tears streaming down her own face now, Nejire lashed out at them. "Please just stand down!" she cried. "It's for your own good…PLEASE!"

"Everyone uses that excuse!" Todoroki shot back. "Why are you trying so hard? Why do we have to deal with people getting angry at us for just wanting to help a friend?"

"She's not angry," said Yuga Aoyama. "She's terrified."

Nejire sniffled, her eyes widening a little. A pause, a lull fell over them. It was the first time he had spoken, staring right at her. He's always staring. But he doesn't just stare. He sees.

Aoyama's classmates looked back at him, disbelieving and annoyed. He looked anxious for a moment, but then nodded toward Nejire. "Just look at her."

They all looked.

Nejire just floated there, trying to slow her breaths. Her scars burned where the tears passed over them. She watched their faces change.

From angry, to dubious, to…conflicted. Some began to reach a calm. Others, perhaps an understanding.

And others still, the ones with the most empathy and intelligence…Kirishima. Tsuyu. Even Shoji, mostly behind his mask. A hint of the fear that was wracking her from the inside out appeared in their eyes. It passed from her to them.

"Is it…is it really like that, ribbit?" Tsuyu muttered.

"Guys…" Bakugo turned and looked at them, frustrated. "GUYS!" he barked. "C'mon! Pull yourselves together!"

Iida seemed to steel himself. "Regardless of the risks, Hado-senpai, I'm afraid we have no choice."

"We'll handle whatever gets in our way!" added Hagakure.

Yaoyorozu's eyes simmered with doubt. "But if Midoriya really doesn't want to-"

"He's forgotten some things, that's all," said Ochako. "We'll make him remember."

"You'll do nothing of the sort," said a new voice.

All of Class A gasped and whirled about. Half the gathering crowd gasped. Nejire felt a flood of relief.

Entering the space, the crowd parting to make way for him, was All Might. Tamaki walked alongside him.

"I saw what was going on and hurried to find help!" her graduate partner called to her. "Sorry, I looked for their teacher, but I think he's still recovering from injuries."

Nejire stared at him, somewhat dryly, then tilted her gaze to the former Symbol of Peace. "He'll do."

"All Might!" Bakugo yelled. "You can't seriously tell us that leaving him out there by himself is a good idea-"

"He is not by himself." Toshinori Yagi looked worse for wear, and there was a sadness in his words, but he was taking Nejire's side. "He has a great deal of help. Help that is authorized to be out there. You nineteen, on the other hand, are authorized to help guard this facility. This facility which now has millions of people we need to keep safe inside it." He raised his voice so that the watching civilians could hear him. "We all need to do the roles for which we are authorized, now. That is how we are going to beat All For One and his army."

"But Deku-" Ochako began.

"Will come back." All Might cut her off. "He will be back eventually. For now, there is work yet to be done. So please be patient." He stared at Nejire, as if handing the last word to her.

Nejire's heart went out to the retired hero. If he's back here for good, that means Midoriya made him come back. He was no doubt carrying his own regrets, but was choosing to concede to Midoriya's wishes.

She addressed the class. "You have my word on this, whatever it's still worth to you. I will work with Midoriya-kun and we'll come back together. He's not going to die. That note he left you won't be the last you hear from him. But…" She looked directly at Ochako. "He left that note in the first place so you guys would understand the scale of his burden, and you've come away from it understanding even less than before. When he does come back, I hope you'll apologize for not respecting his wishes. Midoriya isn't yours to protect, or coddle, or belittle, or disrespect in any way." He's mine, she almost added, instinctively, and just managed to stop herself. "Don't try and talk to me again if you see me around here. I don't want to talk to you."

Many of Class A recoiled, surprised at her venom, ashamed by her words. Didn't think I had it in me, did you? She turned around and headed for the fortress tunnel.

As she left, she could hear the crowd disperse, alive with chatter, and she half-expected Ochako or Tsuyu to call after her. But they did not.

Just outside the barrier, footsteps shuffled up beside her.

"You always walk too fast when you're angry," said Tamaki, breathing somewhat heavily. "Wait for me next time."

"My bad, I'll just be sure to be extra accommodating to you and your new girlfriend's magic hour whenever I'm jumped by a gang of angry high schoolers again."

"That's not fair. How was I supposed to know they'd confront you like that? Also, how do you know about Nova? I didn't tell you about her."

Nejire rolled her eyes. "They would have confronted you too, if you'd been there the whole time."

"I'm…sorry that I wasn't."

She sighed. "I'm…sorry too. You did well to bring All Might there." A long pause as they walked side by side. That wasn't all. "And…you can have a girlfriend if you want, that's none of my business. I'm not actually mad at you, I'm just…"

"Still in a lashy-outy kinda mood?" Tamaki suggested.

She raised an eyebrow at him. "Who are you and what have you done with Amajiki."

"I, uhh…am I acting different?" He flushed. "I don't know…well. Maybe it's Nova."

"You can't have been seeing her for that long. Try not to go too fast, you crazy kids."

"We're not! I'm! Intentionally not going that fast! I swear!" He was now the shade of a tomato.

Nejire giggled. It was nice to giggle. "Yeah, that sounds more like you."

"Hmmph." Tamaki crossed his arms. "You know, Nova said something funny. We talked about you for just a second, because she was wondering why I get so flustered around most girls but not you, and I explained how you're like a sister to me-"

"Charmed, by the way."

"Anyway, shut up, yeah, so I explained that, and wondered if you had anyone you liked, because I honestly hadn't thought about it much in a while, and then Nova said she thinks you like Midoriya."

Inwardly, Nejire shrieked, HOW is that possible? "Where would she get that from? She hasn't seen either of us in a while."

"I dunno. I guess just her observations at the safehouse? She also talks to a lot of the people we've rescued, who have seen you and Midoriya fighting together and stuff. So maybe that's part of it." Tamaki shrugged. "Anyway, I thought that sounded kind of silly…that is, until I heard you arguing with Class A."

It was Nejire's turn to heat up, just a little. "Yeah?"

"You sure did defend him with your life. Like he means a lot to you. I'm dense as a brick and even I could see it." Tamaki's eyes glimmered. "I think that if he'd heard everything you said, he'd be really happy with you."

Nejire's hair did something it hadn't done since before the war - two tufts of it perked up into spirals, all on their own.

Her hair spirals had always been part of her hero costume. Sometimes she had to do them manually with product, which she'd hardly bothered to do in the last month, the circumstances being what they were. Other times in the past, they had popped up when she was feeling particularly strongly about something, usually in a good way. Since she was a kid. It was almost like a second Quirk.

Tamaki didn't miss this, either. "So…then…"

"Shut up," she mumbled. "Don't be an idiot about it. Besides…girls are the furthest thing from that boy's mind."

Izuku Midoriya was currently thinking about girls.

He had been looking through Quirk records, searching for anything that matched the power that took the explosives from the trunk, and had come up with nothing. He had found Naru Hojo's Quirk, the one Camie had described in menacing terms, and the records simply said it was a basic forcefield Quirk. Many of the other villains did not have their Quirks recorded at all, thanks to All For One's EMP attacks immediately following the mass breakout.

So that had been a bust. And now Izuku was thinking about girls instead.

It's just not clear, he thought, pacing back and forth inside the Kijimi base of operations and muttering up a storm. A lukewarm can of ravioli sat on the table next to him, uneaten. Two personnel carrying a heavy computer station walked past him and looked concerned.

Before, when female attention had been unheard of for Izuku, giving any attention to them or the mere concept of them was something to be avoided. A distraction. But now, with both recent events in reality and his Mirko dream, all that was out the window.

The thing was, before Camie, there had been a pattern. Iruka and Rei? They'd asked for his help and care as a one-off thing and then gone on their way, satisfied. Mandalay? She'd done a performance with him as a one-off thing and then they'd talked through it and put it behind them.

Camie? She'd kissed the hell out of him and no such finality had been established. So what did that mean? There was no doubt she'd show up again. So would she want to kiss him again?

And if she does, what do I want? To be something more with her? If any of the other incidents had not neatly closed off the way they had, would he have wanted something from those?

How do I not KNOW?!

And what about Lady Nagant?

Project ongoing, snickered Banjo.

A lot of feelings went through him when he thought of Camie. Izuku wasn't sure what most of them meant. They made him fluttery. But above all, he wanted to help her. Had to help her. Helping her meant stopping her enemies, and saving UA from a potential bombing in the process, but the thought of seeing her vindicated…after all she'd been through. The thought of seeing her smile and being the cause of that. It was almost enough for Izuku on its own.

"The commanders are back!" someone announced, causing a scramble to ensue.

And that would be Hado. Yet another girl. Well, at least there was nothing complicating his relationship with her.

As Nejire and Tamaki entered the base, Gang Orca immediately went up to them. "Commander," he boomed. "Lieutenant commander. The Hojos' ball is in three nights' time. We need to decide what we're doing."

Izuku perked up and listened to the conversation from a distance, as minor heroes and police gathered around.

"I'm not sure we should do anything." Amajiki frowned. "It's clearly some kind of trap."

Nejire tapped her chin inquisitively. "Isn't it supposed to be a masquerade ball? Maybe we could send someone in with a disguise."

"They will be looking for us to use that tactic, surely," said Gang Orca. "And the disguised person would still have to use the invitation that was given to the heroes. They'd see right through it."

"Hmm. We could send a stealth patrol just out of our territory on the road to the ball, and detain people who are headed there? And steal their invitations and then disguise ourselves? Or…we could wait until everyone's drunk and sleeping and then attack early in the morning?"

"They have countermeasures," one of the officers said. "Just the registered Quirks alone would make it tough to perform a sneak attack. And that doesn't account for all the unregistered ones."

"As for the first plan," said Gang Orca, "most of the guests will already be from Hojo territory. We will have a difficult time snagging any of them in transit. Besides, there is no lawful reason to detain any of them."

Nejire deadpanned. "They're on their way to a crime outfit's party."

"Yes, but they wouldn't be there yet. I am…reluctant to bend the rules again. We should play this by the book if we can." Gang Orca looked troubled, clearly thinking of the casino.

"They have an invitation!" she pointed out.

"So do we."

Nejire growled in frustration, cutely. "No one who isn't a criminal is out left on the streets anyway. We should just take them in under reasonable suspicion."

"Sure, if we so happened to run into a person who is currently charged with crimes, which wouldn't be out of the question with this clientele. But a lot of them have served jail time before and currently have clean records."

"We could claim we're taking them to a shelter for their own safety," suggested Tamaki. "The current law says we are allowed to at least attempt to engage with them if that's our business."

Yes, but when people don't WANT to be sheltered, we're not allowed to force them to come with us, thought Izuku. That very situation had happened to him numerous times in the last month.

"If they fight, that would give us a pretense to take their invitations, I suppose…" Gang Orca mused. "Still, how would disguises work from there?"

Nejire looked at Izuku. "Maboromicamie's Quirk can disguise people as other people, can't it? That's what you used when you infiltrated the Hojos the first time."

All eyes fell to him. Izuku cleared his throat. "I…ah…yes? But…?"

"Do you have a way to get in touch with her?"

Izuku reddened. He was thinking of the kiss again now. "Uhh…I don't know. She's…evasive."

"Maybe we should just let the party be," Tamaki said with a sigh. "They're clearly preparing something for us. If we ignore the invite, let whatever plan they've cooked up totally misfire, and maybe watch from a distance…"

"No." Izuku shook his head. "No, we can't. The Hojos are the last big puzzle piece. There may not be much time left to sit back."

"So…then…what?" Gang Orca looked between the younger heroes. "We have a suit. We have a formal dress. We have a few masquerade masks, and we have the invitation. Does anyone want to volunteer?"

Silence. No one could make a decision yet.

The group dissolved, everyone melting away to their individual tasks, more than a little frustrated.

The days passed.

Izuku periodically patrolled further and further out, searching for the last remaining independent villains in the metropolitan area.

He found very little. Japan had emptied. The country all but held its breath.

More than half the heroes were now pulled back and defending the shelters, though with how many had retired or been killed, that still wasn't enough.

Coming back to Kijimi, though, was a different story. It, along with apparently a few other "villain hubs" around the country, were some of the only places where there were still hero field operations…and they had numerous villains in their captivity as well.

It was these captives that Izuku spoke to when he was not on patrol. He interrogated them. He asked them all the same questions about the coded message Mustard had left at the power station. The one that AFO's hired gun had claimed villains would understand.

Not a single one of the Kijimi captives did.

"They're all career criminals," Mandalay told him, on a rare day when she worked up the courage to speak to him. "Mafia, yakuza…they don't use codes like that. They would see it as cowardly."

But groups like the League…Independent gangs. Villains with ideals. The comic-book kind. The ones like Mustard. Unfortunately, Izuku couldn't find any of those on his patrols, either. Every person who could understand what this message says is likely part of All For One's army. And by the time he got a chance to talk to any of them, it would be too late.

"But he could be planting the next bomb right now!" Izuku hissed aloud, pulling at his own hair.

Nejire, nearby, was alarmed. "Hey, hey. What's the matter?"

He had noticed her taking charge here and there in the last few days, though they hadn't spoken much. She seemed to be in a more curious mood, a more…Nejire mood.

Izuku composed himself. I wish I was wearing my mask. He spoke plainly and neutrally. "We're out of leads. All we have is this Company Town thing, and I'm not even sure that will go anywhere."

"Well, the charity ball is in just a few hours." Outside, the sun was on its way down. Nejire's eyes glimmered.

"Are you planning on attacking?"

"N-not necessarily. There's no plan yet, but…if the Company Town is connected to the Hojos, then they might have answers. While you're around, we could use your help."

"Yeah…" That's what Camie would want. He had not told Nejire the details he'd heard about the Town…that it really was a mob base, and that it was controlled somehow by Naru Hojo's forcefield Quirk. Because then she'd want to know where he got those details. And that would involve talking about Camie. And for some reason, he really didn't want to talk to Nejire about Camie.

The girl said you could go to that roof again if you needed her, remember? said Yoichi. Why not ask her for clarification about the mob boss's Quirk? Or you could at least try and connect her with these people so they can share information.

That's true. You don't really have time to pursue Mustard AND act as a bridge between her and the other heroes. They need to be working together without your help, En put in.

Izuku frowned. If he could do that, then he wouldn't have to worry about the Hojos so much anymore.

No, that's not right. The business card at the crime scene, Camie's information…I have everything I need to know that the Hojos are at least involved in this. I can't leave them to someone else.

Even if he wanted to just throw Camie at Nejire and the others, tell them to get along and handle it, and be done with it himself, he couldn't let this go. And I should respect her wishes. She wants to stay distant for a reason. Izuku wanted so badly to believe that it wasn't something drastic. That he could trust Camie fully.

It's hard to mistrust a girl when she kisses you like THAT, chuckled Nana.

"Midoriya-kuuun," Nejire was singing, poking him on the forehead.

"Ow. What? Stop that." He shooed her off.

"You weren't listening! I was just saying, that if you really wanted a lead, there is someone else you can ask. About the coded message." She had an excited look.

"Who?"

Nejire leaned close to him. Izuku froze up, suddenly confused, and anticipating a now-familiar situation…but no, she was not looking for a kiss. She was looking in his pocket instead. Her hand reached into it and dug around there.

"Hey," he protested, slightly embarrassed at himself for imagining that she might kiss him. She's the one that will remain firmly out of my league, no matter what happens. Burns or not, he still found Nejire almost unimaginably beautiful.

The bubbly heroine pulled her hand free, something shiny between her fingers. "A-ha! You still have it after all!" She held it up into the light, showing him.

It was a bottle cap. ALKENHZI BREWING, it read.

Izuku's eyes widened. "I…forgot about that…" He took it from her, jaw dropped. They'd found the bottle cap after the hospital fight. "Stain. Stain might know the code. But you didn't even believe that he left this!"

"I was…skeptical, I'll admit. But it's the best lead you've got. And if Suneater is right, then it sounded like he had something to give you specifically."

"You think he might be willing to help? That we wouldn't even have to fight him or anything?" Izuku twisted his mouth. "I dunno. The brewery is near Kamino. That's a long way."

"Ha…yeah…" Something darker flashed across her face. "I got that. I wasn't…you know. Volunteering to come with. Unless you wanted me to! In which case, I'm sorry, but…I've got responsibilities here and stuff, so…"

Izuku stared. Why might she be wary of going somewhere with me? There were a myriad of obvious reasons, but it seemed like she was hiding something.

"Are you gonna go then?" she asked, energetic again, hands folded behind her waist, rocking on her toes expectantly.

"...I should." Stain was a loose cannon, but with the explosives out in the wind, there was no time to grasp onto anything else. It was, admittedly, Izuku's best lead. This coded message is probably a misdirect, and I don't intend to play Mustard's game, but I need…SOMETHING.

He'd been searching for days for an excuse to go all-in on the Mustard mission, to put Kijimi behind him once again…and now that he had that excuse…he hesitated.

Camie's pretty face floated in front of his brain again. Her blonde hair billowing in the wind. The pain of her past pooling in her eyes.

"We could ask her," he muttered. "We could ask her right here. If she knows the code."

Nejire realized who he was talking about. "No," she said. "You…shouldn't talk to her. I talked to her once, and…I don't think that's a good idea."

"She can't see. What could she possibly do to me?"

"It's not that, it's just…" The heroine took a deep breath. Unable to meet his eyes now.

Izuku stood up. "I'm asking her."

Pale-faced, Nejire sighed. "Okay," she conceded.

There was a sense of unease around the base.

Shifty eyes of passersby followed Nejire before flitting away. Izuku noticed this from at least three different people. Others were sitting around not doing much, or attending to tasks in a detached, distracted type of way.

Everyone expected for there to be a plan for the night. That ball will be starting any minute, and it looks like nothing's going to be done after all. Izuku didn't know what to think about that. Nejire wore a plastered smile, greeting her inferiors when they came in close proximity, but there was no way she didn't notice the tension. She will feel responsible.

They arrived at the door that led toward the cell. Mandalay was standing guard by it.

When she noticed Izuku and Nejire approaching, she started. "Ah! Erm…commander. Deku. Are you here to speak to the…?"

"Mmhmm." Nejire nodded. "Mandalay, you can either stay here and make sure no one comes in while we're talking to her, or you could do me a huuuuge favor and go calm people down…"

"I'll get on that right away, sounds perfect!" The older heroine interrupted, hurrying past the two of them and letting out an eep when she accidentally brushed Izuku's shoulder, picking up speed as she zoomed around the corner.

"...upstairs," Nejire finished dryly, Mandalay already long gone.

The teens exchanged a glance, both knowing why that had just happened, and both wishing it could be different.

"I guess I'll guard, then," she muttered. "Give you two some privacy. She'll be less cooperative if I'm there, anyway."

Izuku nodded, and went through the door.

The hall was dim; the ceiling lights had been turned to the lowest setting. Blind people don't need light.

The Skindancer had been laying on her side in the corner of the cell, but she rolled over when she heard Izuku's footsteps, revealing her scarred, glazed eyes. "Who's there?" she croaked.

"My name is Deku."

The villain licked her lips. "That means useless. You were the other hero in disguise. The boy." She smiled. "That explains why Mandalay was in such a hurry."

Izuku winced. "You heard all that."

"My ears have gotten quite good." Mitoma sat up. "It must be strange, no? To see her so afraid. All because of a kiss. Heroes don't make good actors, it seems."

"We fooled you easily enough."

"I'm talking about something more." The Skindancer flared her nostrils. "Actors are trained to treat intimacy as part of the job. After they film an intimate scene, they move on, like the professionals they are. Mandalay was not capable. And since you're just a teenage boy…I bet you're doing even worse."

That annoyed him. Even if I did have trouble handling my feelings for all these…women, which I totally d-don't…what does it matter? Iruka and Rei are better off without me. Most of the matters are closed. But…the matter of Camie was still open. The matter of Lady Nagant was still open. He'd had a dream of Mirko, who'd fled from him at karaoke. And Mandalay clearly had not moved on, either.

"Feelings are complicated," he said aloud. "We heroes have trouble with them because we understand the weight that intimacy should hold. Something you'll never get, you, who turned sex into a product."

The Skindancer's lip curled. "What do you want, Deku?"

Izuku hesitated. He pulled the coded message from his pocket and stared at it. This is what he'd come here to ask her about, yet…

None of the other captives have known anything. She can't see. I would have to explain the symbols to her, and she won't want to be helpful anyway. What am I even doing here?

His mind balanced on the precipice. Unformed decisions threatened to burst to the top. The vestiges remained silent.

Izuku stepped closer.

"Tell me about the Company Town," he heard himself say, low enough so that Nejire outside would not have a chance to hear.

Mitoma's grin returned. "You've done well to come to me, dear," she purred. "Ha! What a turn of events this is."

"So you do know about it."

"Only the highest echelon of the Harbor do." The Skindancer inched closer, dragging herself forward. "I don't know how many of my associates you have locked up here, but I'm guessing they're all small fry who know nothing. The Hojos were our enemy, after all. And any captive from their side, who might know more, would keep it to themselves unless you got them with a truth Quirk. Any captive worth his or her salt, that is." She tittered. "So all the minions have failed you, bringing you to me."

"It's a Hojo base, then. Somewhere besides Kijimi. Where is it?"

"That I don't know. If I did, it would be ashes and cinders by now."

"I heard from an…informant that the Town is powered by Naru Hojo's Quirk. Our records show that his Quirk just generates a forcefield. Was my informant wrong?"

She fully laughed, unsettlingly. "Sounds like it's your records that are wrong. Nasty, nasty Naru. His Quirk…you could call what it makes a forcefield, I guess. Though it's simple enough to enter any area where his Quirk is active, meaning its defensive purposes are limited. Harder, though…is leaving. You see…whenever the old rascal creates a field…it comes attached with a command. A command from the man himself that everyone within has to follow. They follow it at the expense of their health, their well-being, their mental independence…they follow it until he lifts the field. And his fields last for years."

Izuku's mouth had gone dry. His heart pounded in his ears. In this age, you don't get to positions like his…or what hers used to be…without a strong Quirk. Powers that controlled, that manipulated, that…dehumanized. "What sort of commands?" he murmured.

"Why, anything, dear. Fight for me. Throw yourself off the roof. Pleasure me and my subordinates. And…perhaps most relevant to your original question…work." Mitoma came very close to him, as close as she could get. "The Company Town is a project powered by Quirk-induced slave labor. Who knows how many he has trapped there? Probably as many as he could get his hands on. He was trying to secure his position in the wake of your war. In preparation for a villain takeover. We all were. All around the country. We had to make sure we would be safe, and safe on top. We didn't care how many bodies we had to stomp down beneath us." The Skindancer tilted her head. "Does that upset you, Deku?"

Izuku was trembling. He knew that he would be unable to hide the emotion in his voice. "What. Does he make them. Work on."

"Ah…that, I only heard rumors about. Some said machines, others said weapons. A few even whispered something about chemicals and genetics, something akin to the Hassaikai's aborted project. But one thing was clear - it was real supervillain shit, as you might think of it."

Izuku left her on that note. She had begun to laugh like a lunatic, and her laughter followed him out the door.

Nejire's eyes widened as he passed her. "What happened? What did she say?"

When Izuku did not respond, continuing on without looking back at her, she shouted angrily, "DEKU! Where are you going?"

"I'm going to that ball," Izuku said. "I'm going to talk to Naru Hojo."

Outside, night had fallen.