10/12/2022

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The Emperor's Dragon
Emergence 32 - The Mall

"You wanted to see me?" Izuku said, slipping into the chair opposite Tomura.

The young man was sitting in the food court, with a lukewarm plate of takoyaki in front of him. He'd eaten a random two but that was it. Izuku had pulled the plate into the centre of the small table to take one. They were mediocre as well as lukewarm.

"Why didn't they pay attention?" Tomura demanded. He slammed one hand down on the little table. The only reason it didn't disintegrate was the napkin under his finger.

"Who?" Izuku asked as he eyed the takoyaki. It seemed wasteful to leave them but-

"The sheeple! The media! Anyone!" the young man clarified. Tomura's hood was pulled up, probably to make him feel better since he didn't have a hand with him.

"I don't-" Izuku paused, remembering what Tomura had told him previously. "You were in Hosu?"

The news had gone on about it for what seemed like weeks but was only a few days. The Hero Killer Stain had been apprehended and something else had been disturbing the peace but had mostly been contained. The media had only rambled on because some UA students had work placements there. The implication had been that at least one of them had been involved in Stain's capture.

"Why didn't anyone pay attention?" Tomura demanded again.

Izuku gave him a look. It was coming together for him now. Tomura had told him he wanted recognition and had then gone to interfere with the Hero Killer. "Did you get him captured?"

"Pft!" Tomura dismissed that suggestion. "The moron got himself captured," he stated.

"And the media only mentioned the Nomu in passing?" Izuku prompted.

"Yes! Why?"

Again Izuku gave the young man a look. "He's actually done stuff," he suggested.

Tomura half growled at that but Izuku held firm. "He's only taken out a few second rate heroes," he pointed out.

"And faced off against Endeavor," Izuku added. And actually not done too badly either, when you read between the lines of the news. In the aftermath vids, Endeavor seemed okay but he wasn't pristine. Stain had fought back.

Tomura didn't seem happy with that comment which meant he acknowledged the truth.

"Did Stain kill anyone in Hosu?" Izuku asked.

"A couple but he got interrupted before he could kill Native."

Izuku remembered the hero. "Pity," he muttered. He wondered if Native's would be work experience hero would have survived. Apparently the Iida boy had accepted Native's Work Experience offer. The only reason he wasn't in Hosu was that Eraserhead had vetoed the selection and insisted that Tenya go somewhere else.

At that, Tomura snorted. "I don't get it! I attacked UA, why didn't that get attention?"

"That was suppressed," Izuku reminded him but he was still thinking about Stain.

"It's not fair!"

He almost laughed when Tomura said that and while he managed to suppress it, he couldn't help the smile that crossed his features. Tomura knew the world wasn't fair. "I think it's also that Stain had a message," he told the young man.

"What do you mean?"

"Stain had a message. He made a statement that heroes were only in it for the pay, or fame or some other self-serving reason. He was deluded of course with his belief in the one true hero but people could relate to what he was saying," Izuku explained, shrugging as he took another takoyaki.

He immediately regretted it. The now cold takoyaki was beyond subpar.

Tomura didn't say anything for a while. "So it's about the message?"

Izuku nodded. "And even if people don't agree, they have to relate to it."

"What do you mean?" Tomura demanded, his eyes particularly intent.

"People have to relate to it," Izuku repeated. "The little NPCs and those who would be party members, they have to relate to your message."

"What's so hard to relate to my message? I want to kill All Might."

"Why?" Izuku asked, holding up one hand. "I know why," he said before Tomura could object. "But they have to know why," he added, gesturing to the people sitting around them. There was enough other noise that Tomura's statement hadn't attracted attention.

"Because he-"

"Don't explain to me," Izuku broke in. "I already know why. You have to explain to them and in such a way that, even if they don't agree, they can relate to it."

"What's the point if they don't agree?" Tomura growled.

He shook his head. "Think about Stain for a moment. He said that the only real hero was All Might and that others were just in it for fame, or money. They weren't real heroes."

He waited for Tomura to acknowledge the statement and eventually got a nod. "There's enough heroes out there who are only doing it for the money, or the fame that the public can understand that. They can think of examples. Or if they can't, their relatives can. It's something they know. And, unfortunately a lot of them believe that All Might is a Hero of Heroes, so even if they don't agree with Stain, they know what he's saying. They can agree with some of it."

Izuku saw the way Tomura's lip curled but he also knew the young man understood. He didn't like it but he understood. "You want recognition, right?" Izuku asked. He already knew the answer. Tomura had told him the other day. "You can get that as being just another villain but if you want to be remembered then you are going to have to have a message that people can relate to."

Tomura sighed and then picked up the napkin. He disintegrated it, watching as the dust dropped to the table. "I just want to kill All Might," he muttered.

Izuku gave a soft laugh. "Me too," he agreed. It didn't matter that Dad had said he had to make his own choice, he still wanted that. "But we have to remember what happens next if things are to change," he reminded Tomura of dad's teachings.

"Yeah, it will have to be bigger than just one hero," Tomura agreed.

Izuku nodded as he pushed the takoyaki back across the table.

Tomura sighed and pressed his fingers against the packaging. It vanished leaving the remaining takoyaki in a tiny pile of ash with the bad sauce congealing in it.

"Oh, gimme some blood," Tomura demanded, still looking down.

"What?"

"Gimme some blood. Giran's bringing in some recruits and I want to test their quirks."

"Use your own!"

"I am, but I wanna see if type makes a difference."

"Can't the Doctor give you some?"

"I wanna mix," Tomura grumbled.

Izuku huffed. "Got a container?" He supposed this was one way he could help and he was sure that would be Tomura's next line if he kept refusing.

Tomura produced a small vial and thumbed off the cap.

Izuku sighed and gave Tomura a withering look before he held out one hand and used poison fang to make a claw to cut his finger tip. A few drops of blood fell into the vial before regeneration took effect.

"That's it?" Tomura demanded.

"That's it," Izuku said. He shouldn't need to explain why. "How is dad?" he asked before Tomura could say anything more as he put away the vial.

"Same as always," came the reply.

"No breathing issues?" Izuku pressed.

Tomura gave him a flat stare. "I don't use my quirk around him," he growled.

Izuku gave him a smile. It said without words everything that needed to be said. If Tomura did use his quirk around Dad, then there would be consequences. He didn't know how. He didn't know when, but he'd make Tomura pay.

"Tch!"

"Is that all you wanted?" Izuku asked.

It was Tomura's turn to huff. "Yeah. I'll have to think about it," he said, referring to the Hero Killer and the information Izuku had given him before he got up.

"We both will," Izuku agreed as Tomura stalked off leaving him with the mess.

Izuku sighed. At least there was a tray holder on the side of the table that had a tray in it so he pulled that out and placed it at the side of the table. Then he scraped the mess onto it. A small barrier from Caeli Imperum meant his hand didn't get dirty, which was about the only good thing. Then he rose and took the tray with him.

Sometimes Tomura liked to cause problems for the sake of causing problems and he'd better not be using his quirk casually around Dad…

He huffed. If he was, he'd told Tomura there would be consequences. And there would be. Just not yet.

-ted-

"Guys," Kyoka heaved, trying to suppress her shivers. Her classmates crowded close. She hadn't managed to find many. Just Katsuki, Ibara, Mina and Kirishima. The rest were scattered through the complex. Some could even be in the food court.

"What's wrong?" Ibara asked.

She shook her head. This was more important. "The villain. He's here!"

"What villain?"

"The one from USJ," she got out.

"What?" Katsuki demanded, small pops on his hands showing his reaction. "Where? I'll kill that fucker."

"He's with someone." Kyoka told them.

"Who?"

"I don't know but the voice was familiar," she said.

"Let's go!" Katsuki practically shouted.

"Are you sure we should? Maybe we should call a hero."

"I'll get the fucker and whoever he's with," Bakugou insisted and they all recognised when he was like this, there was nothing that could be done.

"I will find someone," Ibara said softly as she moved away.

"Let's go," Bakugou snarled.

They were on the second floor, but still near the food court where she'd heard the villain. Bakugou stalked towards the opening and Kyoka grabbed him. "You can't just jump over," she told him. There were other civilians down there and they didn't have licenses.

He growled at her.

"We should at least see where he is, man," Kirishima interfered.

Kyoka gave her red haired classmate a smile. Katsuki at least seemed to listen to him sometimes. He'd listen to others, but not when he was worked up. They walked to the opening and looked over.

"Where is he?" Bakugou hissed.

"There," Mina pointed. Surprisingly she wasn't loud but she was pointing at a guy in a black hoodie who was walking away from a table. Back at the table, another teen was scrapping the food scraps onto a tray.

"That fucker!" Bakugou barked, looking at the other teen who was now carrying the tray to one of the bins.

"Who?" Kirishima asked.

"It's that management fucker," Katsuki snarled.

They all knew who that referred to. Bakugou had been pissed that a management student had done better than him during the Sport's Festival. Even though the other teen had pulled out before the tournament and it had been weeks ago, he was still pissed.

"Let's go," Bakugou announced, pushing away from the railing and storming towards the elevator. It said a lot about his expression that people melted out of their pathway. They got back to the food court in time to see the management student put the tray onto a stack and turn away. The other guy, the villain, was nowhere to be seen.

"We lost him," Kyoka said, trying to suppress the disquiet she felt. If she could see him, she at least knew where he was.

"Doesn't matter," Katsuki said as he stalked towards the management student.

Given the hostility Bakugou was projecting it was no surprise that he sensed them coming. Most of the civilians did too and got out of the way. The management student, Mitei Chui simply moved slightly into a little alcove and waited, looking slightly curious as to what they wanted.

"You a traitor now Chui?" Bakugou demanded.

Mitei frowned. Kyoka could tell he didn't understand. "You obviously want to speak to me, but could you at least make sense?" He asked.

The question was like oil on fire and it was only because Kirishima grabbed Katsuki that the Management student didn't get an explosion to the face. Kyoka was impressed that he didn't look concerned at the prospect and then she felt worried herself. If the management student didn't look concerned he was either willing to take the damage, and then probably report Bakugou and… without a license and the right backing behind Mitei, Katsuki would be in a world of trouble or… He had some sort of ace up his sleeve.

"We saw you with a villain," Mina stepped in to say.

"A villain?" Mitei asked, frowning. "Where?"

"Before! At the table."

At that Mitei actually chuckled. "What makes you hero students want to see villains everywhere?" he asked rhetorically. "If I was with a villain, don't you think I'd be more distressed?" he challenged.

He certainly didn't look distressed.

"You were with a villain," Bakugou growled, shaking off Kirishima.

"I was?" Mitei asked, his voice tinged with confusion.

Kyoka realised there was a chance Mitei really didn't know what they were talking about. The villain from USJ had not been advertised and… they'd been told not to speak about it. As far as she knew, everyone had obeyed that and now…

"You were sitting with the bastard!" Bakugou snapped.

Mitei frowned. "You mean Arata?" he asked before he laughed.

"Is that his name?" Kyoka asked. She was sure the villain had introduced himself by another name.

Mitei gave her a quizzical look. "That's his name," he confirmed.

"Are you sure?" Kyoka demanded.

"I went to school with him for 11 years," Mitei told her. "I'm pretty sure." He might have sounded dismissive but he was confident. Mitei then blinked at them. "Did you think that Arata's a villain?" he asked before he laughed again. "Seriously?"

While she was sure she'd heard the villain, Kyoka felt a stab of uncertainty. Was it really the villain? Would Mitei really know a villain? She wasn't sure.

"Seriously!" Bakugou snarled. "If Long Ears says she heard the villain, then she heard the villain."

Mitei gave them all a bland look and Kyoka felt the good feeling she had because Bakugou trusted her disappear. "Is that what you are learning in the Heroic's Course?" he asked. "How to level accusations?"

"It was a villain," Kyoka said softly but without the certainty she had felt earlier.

"It was Arata," Mitei countered, shaking his head as he raised one hand. "But feel free to go ask him yourself," he added, gesturing towards the crowds.

"How about we just ask you?" Bakugou retaliated.

"You're getting a bit ahead of yourself, aren't you?" Mitei said. "You have no license, and no right to question me," he told them.

That was true.

"We can still tell the teachers," Mina responded as again Kirishima grabbed Bakugou.

"And I will tell them what I told you. I had lunch with one of my old friends who happened to be in Tokyo." Mitei gave them all that bland look. "Is that all you wanted?" he asked pointedly.

Kyoka didn't know what to do. She was sure that she'd heard the villain but… Maybe he had been at another table. Maybe Arata just had the same vo- No. She knew that wasn't the case. It was more likely the villain had left another table and Mitei had just been cleaning up by coincidence. It was also possible that Mitei didn't know his friend was a villain but threatening him now would change nothing.

"I'm sorry," she said, stepping forward. "I thought I heard a villain, and by the placing of the tables we've accidentally thought that your friend Arata was him." She bowed slightly.

Mitei looked at them for a few moments before he nodded. "It's alright, these things happen," he comforted her. "But maybe in the future, think about what accusations you make," he added, definitely looking at Bakugou, "before you make threats that get you in trouble," he added, stepping around them.

It was only because Kirishima still had a hold of Bakugou that Mitei wasn't hit with an explosion to the back of the head. As it was, he turned around and sniffed. Kyoka wanted to quail before his expression but it was directed towards Katsuki. "You might want to work on your quirk control," the management student suggested, "before someone decides to have you charged with assault," he added.

"Why you!" Bakugou raged but as he did, Ibara came into view. She had one of the shopping centre's security guards with her.

"No quirk use!" The man shouted. It wasn't to Mitei.

The blue haired teen gave Bakugou a knowing smile. It was one that said he'd find a way to make a charge stick and… Kyoka had to admit he had a point. Right now, Bakugou looked like the villain.

"You'd better not participate next year," Bakugou growled.

Mitei chuckled. "Afraid you'll lose?" he asked, before nodding to them again, and turning to nod to the security guard before he walked away.

The security guard came up to them. "What's this about a villain?" he asked, still glaring at Katsuki. Ibara looked apologetic but this was probably the only person she could find.

"I'm sorry, Sir," Kyoka said, stepping up. "I was mistaken," she said. She wasn't. The villain had been here but-

The security guard looked at her before nodding. "Ah well, better safe than sorry," he agreed. "But as for you," he continued, turning to Bakugou. "This is not a place for quirk usage! And if I see you using it again, I'll want to see your license," the man told them.

"Yes, Sir!" Kirishima agreed for Bakugou before the other teen could answer.

Kyoka nodded as did Mina.

The man gave them a hard look for a few more moments before he turned to head back to his station.

"Bakugou, man-" Kirishima said as Ibara watched silently.

"The little fucker is nothing but an over entitled piece of shit!" Bakugou snarled. "If Long Ear's said he was with a villain, that villain, then he was! He's too fucking smug!"

"You gotta be careful though, man," Kirishima said. He didn't need to add anything more. They'd all learned the same at their work studies. As much as the news made it seem like the Heroes just went after people, they had reason and proof. If they didn't…

A lot of heroes they'd never heard of had made that mistake.

"Yeah, I know," Bakugou snapped, shaking off Kirishima. "But I'll be watching that bastard. If he makes one move-" he didn't finish.

Kyoka felt kind of good that he said that. It meant he believed her.

"We'll have to be careful," Mina said.

"Doing what?" Ibara asked.

The pink girl grinned. "Watching Mitei," she announced.

Kyoka laughed. "We will," she agreed. While she could have made a mistake, she didn't think she had. The villain from USJ had been there, and maybe Mitei had nothing to do with him but maybe he did.

They had to be sure.

-ted-

So Izuku is still there to offer advice to Tomura, on the very few occasions that the older teen asks for it. And of course, he gets to meet Bakugou. Let's just say that Izuku's initial impression of him, after watching Ochaco's fight in the Sport's Festival, hasn't been improved by meeting Bakugou in person.

This is a bit of a conversation I wish someone would have had with Bakugou. If quirk use without a license is such a big deal, then why did Bakugou get warnings or just ignored for so long. As a kid, I get it, he supposedly, doesn't understand or have the control to not use his quirk but as he got older, he should have been able to control it - and we know he could - so why was it just accepted by everyone - even those who didn't 'worship' him as an up and coming hero (those at his school)?

My discord is on this code: ZX2R5h2cEm FFN will remove links but you should be able to figure that out. There's a heap of other authors there, so come along and chat to us all!

-ted-

Loved it? Hated it? Found a spelling mistake? Let me know please!