Chapter 4

Conflict

She was surrounded.

"There's a pretty penny out there for that head of yours, rabbit!" The apparent leader of the cavalry of fuck ups that had decided to gang up on her said in probably the sleaziest tone he was able to muster, but the only answer she could offer him was a roll of her eyes.

It didn't matter how many times she heard stupid stuff like that, it never got more interesting than the last idiot that thought she wanted to hear whatever monologue he had prepared for the occasion.

Seriously, couldn't he just get to the point? She had like, ten other criminals around her just waiting for this guy to finish off!

"Once I take down a Top 10 Hero, everyone will start seeing me with respect! I'm sure even the League will ask me to join them! That's why, today I will-gluh!"

She was not a patient woman, and this guy had already wasted enough of her time.

But seriously, he couldn't have at least handled one kick?

She had expected a bit more given how much shit he talked and yet, one kick to his stomach was enough to send him crumbling down, knocked unconscious.

Such was her dissapointment that she even huffed in annoyance.

"You bitch!" At the very least, it seemed her sudden attack was enough to finally trigger the rest of the goons around her, given that one of them now had the brilliant idea of charging towards her.

She didn't even bother turning around, so she only turned her head slightly so she could she attack from behind her shoulder. Whatever excitement she had previously had already died out after she judged everyone here as a weakling.

Perhaps, if they all ganged up against her at the same time, it would at least make it a bit entertaining?

Then again...

"Yosh!"

It seemed certain brat had decided to crash on her party without an invite, as he landed right on top of the villain that had been running towards her.

She turned her head around, not even bothering to look back anymore.

A second later, she felt said brat pressing on his back against hers, with the bored look she had now turning into a small smile.

"Shouldn't you be in school or something?" She whispered, low enough so only he would listen. A chuckle was the response she got, just as she felt his back growing warmer.

She didn't have to turn to know he had activated his Quirk.

"Class don't start until next week!" His tone was as laid back as ever, almost as if they weren't still surrounded by villains. "And I couldn't have you hogging all the fun, sensei!"

She snorted at that, as if handling a bunch of idiots like this could even be considered fun by her standards.

Then again, now that her favorite, and only protégé, was here...

"Wanna make it interesting then?" She said as her grin grew wider. "Whoever finished first pays for dinner."

"Oh, you're on!" There was nothing but confidence dripping from his voice, which only made her want to wipe out the grin she knew he was sporting even more.

Then, without missing a beat, they both jumped at their respective targets, the sounds of battle filling the street right after.

Not even once she turned to look behind her though, knowing that her back was as safe as it could get.

After all, if there was someone she could trust, it was Uzumaki Naruto.

The first thing he did was to take on Uzumaki's appearance.

His hair had grown longer, now almost reaching his shoulders, although it was still as spiky as he remembered it.

His attire, of course, had changed, to one he was not familiar with. Long gone was the bright orange and white that used to be Uzumaki's hero suit, instead now replaced with a much duller, burnt orange and black. The long coat he used to wear was now instead a zipped-up vest.

The most striking difference though, was the headband that Uzumaki had around his forehead. That one was most certainly new, although the design he could discern on it was one he remembered seeing on the back of his former hero suit.

He had never figure out what that design meant, and even Uzumaki himself had seemed confused when asked about it all those years ago, even though he had worn it proudly.

At the very least, that part of him hadn't changed, it seemed.

But when he looked down from the headband, he was once more met with that same pair of blue eyes that looked so alike and yet alien from what he remembered.

They looked so... detached from it all, to the point he would almost go as far as to say they looked lifeless...

The fact that they belonged to Uzumaki, who was still simply grinning at them, was enough to make him cold.

It was simply such a... wrong sight.

"Invisigal..." It was his father's voice the one that broke the silence, his tone deadly calm. "Go take out the other guy from here, we will cover you."

It was a clear order, one that made sense given the nature of the situation at hand.

And yet, he couldn't blame Hagakure from seemingly freezing on the spot. It did not take a genius to figure out she was going through the same emotions as he was.

Relief and happiness at seeing Uzumaki once more, yet the situation at hand washed away any hope of a joyful reconciliation.

And with those eyes of his... He truly couldn't blame Hagakure even a bit.

"Invisigal!" This time though, Endeavor's voice came out as a hiss, finally taking out Hagakure out of her stupor if the way he saw her gloves move was any indication.

"O-on it!" Her answer came just as she dropped her gloves into the floor, and while that meant he couldn't pinpoint where she was now, he could still feel her eyes looking at him "Todoroki-kun...please."

She didn't have to voice out her request for him to understand it.

He gave her a nod, of course, his gaze returning to Uzumaki's form right after. The wall of ice he had made should give Hagakure enough cover while they handled Uzumaki.

Although right now, he was not sure what that would entail, given that Uzumaki seemed pretty content with just looking at them with a tilt of his head, even as Hagakure moved towards who, he assumed, Uzumaki had been targeting.

Perhaps, that meant that things didn't have to come to blows?

"Wait, Mirko!"

It seemed the fourth member of their group thought otherwise however, for Mirko suddenly rushed towards Uzumaki, and while he couldn't see her face anymore, her intent was more than obvious given the kick she had launched straight at Uzumaki's head.

The attack never rang true though, for Uzumaki was able to raise his right arm just in time to block it, the dry sound of their limbs clashing filling the room for just a second.

"So gung-ho, you haven't changed at all, have you, sensei?" Right before it was replaced by Uzumakis's tone. One filled with tease he himself had been subjected to whenever they trained together.

Now though, the situation was far from friendly.

"Shoto!"

"I know." He answered Endeavor's yell immediately as they both moved to circle Uzumaki from the sides. Mirko hadn't wasted her time though, for as they moved, he saw her throw kick after kick at Uzumaki, only for him to dodge with an ease that he had never seen from him.

He knew Uzumaki was agile, but the way he was able to simply weave through her kicks was completely different from what he had seen of him.

As soon as he gotten into a proper position, he wasted no time in sending another wave of ice towards them, specifically aimed with the objective of trapping Uzumaki.

At the very least, it seemed Mirko had realized what was going on, for she she swiftly jumped back as soon as his ice got close. Now though, he could see the pretty clear snarl on her face.

He was sure that, if looks could kill, Uzumaki would have been buried ten times by now.

Uzumaki didn't seem to care though, since that smile of his was still present on his face. Same way he cared little about his ice, for he simply jumped before it reached him, high enough so he was touching the ceiling.

But Endeavor has been ready, as a ball of fire was thrown exactly at where Uzumaki was about to make contact with the ceiling. They all knew his Quirk let him stick to any surface, so it had been a calculated move from his father.

But once more, it never hit home, for Uzumaki had finally decided to use his Quirk.

It was still a sight to behold, he had to admit, to see a construct of crimson energy suddenly shoot out from Uzumaki's stretched arm, with the energy suddenly taken the form of a claw right as it caught Endeavor's fireball.

"You can't take him on by yourself, Mirko!" Even from here, he could hear Endeavor's more than annoyed roar, although given the glare Mirko threw in his direction, he was obviously not the only one furious at the moment.

"Just do your best to not get in my way!"

"You know..." Their argument was interrupted however, by Uzumaki's mocking tone of all things. "Arguing like that in front of your opponent, I think you guys need to work on your teamwork a bit."

"Do you think this is a game, Uzumaki?!" Endeavor's attention was now squarely on Uzumaki, who had simply dropped down from the ceiling without seemingly a care in the world. "Do you not realize the gravity of the situation you got yourself into?!"

"Frankly speaking...?" Uzumaki's tone morphed into a detached one, almost as if he didn't care about what he was hearing. "I think I'm the only one that does right now..."

"Uzumaki...no, Naruto!" He called out just as he saw the same crimson energy slowly covering up Uzumaki's form.

"Hmm?" The response he got was him simply turning to look at him with a look of utter boredom, one that almost had him recoiling in shock, but instead he stood his ground, his narrowed gaze aimed squarely at the one he still considered his best friend.

"Why?" He asked without missing a beat. "Why are you doing this? You wanted to be a Hero, so why!?"

If he was honest, he had expected some sort of reaction after saying that, at least something coming from the usually emotional Uzumaki, something that might even clue him in a way of stopping this whole mess before it became even worse.

But what he got was...nothing.

No expression was apparent on Uzumaki's face, almost as if it had been frozen in time. Even his eyes looked lifeless, far more than before, in a way that it sent an honest shiver down his spine.

"It's my duty." Uzumaki's actual answer came out just as numb as his expression, which slowly morphed into the same familiar yet so wrongly looking grin he had before. "What else was I supposed to do?"

His words only made his eyes go wide in shock, their gazes meeting for just a moment longer, right before Uzumaki turned around on his spot in a hurried manner, just in time to catch not only Endeavor's fire covered fist, but also Mirko's leg.

One second later they were both send flying back as Uzumaki simply tossed them back.

The momentaneous distraction had not been in vain though, for he had not wasted his time, especially since Uzumaki was now with his back turned.

"Flashfreeze Heatwave!" He activated the full capabilities of his Quirk, with ice blossoming from his right side at the same time fire burned from his left. In a tandem, his elements flew directly towards Uzumaki, who barely had time to turn his head around before they reached him in unison.

But even as they did, with a loud explosion of vapor and smoke filling the area where Uzumaki was, he could have sworn that, for just a fraction of a second, he saw his smile growing even wider.

With his still gaze glued to the curtain of smoke, he made a beeline towards Endeavor and Mirko, who were already back on their feet.

But as he did, something suddenly left the cloud of smoke, a whirlin sound following on its wake, and it was only the years of training that he had that allowed him to create a pillar of ice in front of him, right before the object made impact with his creation, the metalic weapon now stuck deeply into the ice.

Did Uzumaki just throw him a massive ninja star?

No, that wasn't right...

He threw two.

For just a second later, another flying piece of metal flew right past him. Somehow, he hadn't been able to see it, and he could barely follow it as it went straight towards Mirko.

But credit where credit was due, Mirko wasn't a Top 10 Hero for nothing, given the immediate way she actually jumped over it, the projectile simply sailing past her, towards the other side of the room.

"Good to know you guys haven't lost your touch." A chuckle was heard from the curtain of smoke, just as Uzumaki walked out from it, his Quirk gone. "You always told me to never pull my punches, so please don't take it personally, sensei."

"I'll make us even soon enough, you brat..." If Mirko had been angry before, the now she looked nothing short of furious.

"Scary..." Uzumaki's tone was back to his mocking one from before, but considering what he had seen so far, he didn't know if that was good or not. "I swear you'll never get a boyfriend with that attitude."

He knew Uzumaki had a knack for getting into other people's skin, but to think he would still try that even in a situation like this...

It also seemed to be working, given the way Mirko's eye was twitching.

"Don't!" But Endeavor hissed at her before she even moved. "We need to attack together, or else he'll just keep toying with us. Don't forget he was strong enough to beat All For One!"

He knew his father was right, and even though they didn't know the details, it didn't change the fact that Uzumaki had been able to defeat someone that rivaled All Might in strength.

And that had been two years ago, and judging by what he had seen just now, Uzumaki had learned a couple of new tricks.

"We'll have the advantage once Deku joins us." His father continued, his whole body igniting in flames as he spoke, his voice a low whisper so that only they would hear him. "The only exits are still behind us; we only need to make sure he doesn't get past us for long enough!"

It was a sound idea, he had to admit. If push came to shove, he could also just block the exits with his ice. He knew Uzumaki could break it, but any extra second could be of value.

"Have you finished figuring out your plan?" The fact that Uzumaki was seemingly content with just letting them dictate the flow of this fight was starting to worry him too. It was very much unlike Uzumaki, but considering everything so far, maybe he shouldn't have been so surprised...

"Uzumaki." His father spoke in an even tone. "I will give you a chance to surrender yourself. Things will go easier for you if you do. Otherwise, it might be a cell in Tartarus what awaits you."

"Considering the amount of people that escaped that place and that are still on the run, that isn't as much of a threat as you think it is, Endeavor." A shrug is what he got in return, just as Uzumaki started moving towards them slowly, his empty eyes never leaving them.

He activated his fire immediately, just as his father did, while Mirko moved to a low stance, seemingly more than ready to jump at any second.

"You guys are too on the edge, even though we're on the same side." Even though they were more than ready to act, Uzumaki still kept walking as if there was no problem in the world.

He saw his chance when he stopped walking, a few meters away from them. Ice formed from his feet, moving swiftly through the floor as he tried to immobilize the blonde.

Surprisingly enough, it actually worked, or at the very least, Uzumaki made no movements to avoid it as the ice trapped him by the legs.

"Guess you got me." And yet he seemed to still not care one bit.

Mirko did though, as she suddenly lunged at Uzumaki, her prosthetic limb catching him by the neck, and even under Mirko's heated glare and hold, his smile remained.

"Why? Why would you do this...?!" It seemed he wasn't the only one that was trying to get answers. "After everything that happened...why?!"

"You taught me to follow my instincts..." Uzumaki spoke calmly, even in such situation. "I'm doing just that, sensei."

It seemed those words were too much for Mirko, given the growl that he heard from her, followed right after by her punching Uzumaki straight in the face.

But the result of that was...

"What?!" It was Endeavor who first voiced out his shock, but he couldn't blame him, for just in front of their eyes, Uzumaki had vanished in a cloud of smoke.

No, that wasn't right, it was more as if he had popped into smoke, like some sort of balloon.

He gave his father a perplexed look, which was returned almost immediately, only followed by Mirko's rage-filled roar as she cracked the ice with a stomp.

Once more, they had lost Uzumaki.

Mandalay's voice announcing Midoriya was already on its way did little to sooth the feeling of defeat that cursed through him at that moment.

She moved slowly, as silently as she could.

Every step was calculated, every movement of her body was as controlled as it could get.

Her eyes darted from one spot to the next one, her gaze already more than used to the darkness of the night.

Her ears were perked up, as any sound she could catch on could be the difference between sweet victory and bitter defeat.

She heard nothing however, although that fact didn't surprise her. Her opponent was good, really good in fact. He was the only one that could best her on her home turf, so she was more than aware than any slight mistake could end in-

"Boop, you're it!"

"How's that fair?!" She whined out as she rubbed her nose, while Naruto simply stood opposite of her, a victorious grin on his lips. "You can't have the super flashy combat Quirk and be this good at stealth and detection! You're going to leave me without a job at this rate!"

Seriously!

By now she could be pretty much indetectable to any of their classmates and even teachers, even Shoji if she tried hard enough, but somehow Naruto was still this final boss she couldn't defeat.

Sure, that meant he was an excellent training partner, but her pride could only take so much!

"What can I say? I'm just that awesome."

"And humble too, right?" She muttered under her breath while keeping her pout.

"What was that?"

"Nothing!" Then, she crossed her arms over her chest while giving her back to him. "I'm not talking to you anymore, so leave now, shoo shoo!"

Of course, she wasn't really upset at him, but he didn't need to know that.

"C'mon Tooru you can't get upset; you told me to not hold back!" She sure did, but that sort of logic didn't matter right now for what she had planned, so she simply harrumphed again without turning around.

She didn't have to wait long before she felt Naruto's hands on her shoulders.

"Fine, how about I make it up to you?"

"Really? How?" Her voice turned into a playful tone right after.

"Want to grab a bite? Guess I could pay for-"

"We're not eating ramen again." Just for her voice to turn into a deadpan as he answered her.

"You're taking the fun out of life; I hope you know that." And now he was the one doing the pouting, and while she wouldn't say so in fears of stroking his ego even more, at least he looked cute when he did so.

"I'll take you on that offer though." She finally turned from her spot, just to grab him by the arm, hugging it tightly to her chest.

He didn't say anything, even though most would consider her actions bold. She was naked, after all, and yet not even a small blush from him?

She was happy he was this confortable around her, but her pride dammit!

"Hey, want to help me with pranking Mineta?" He suddenly asked as they both walked out of the building they had been using for training, his smile growing comically sinister as he did.

"What did poor Mineta-kun do to deserve it?" She asked in wonder, more than aware that getting pranked by him could be a fate worse than death.

"He's been giving Izuki some weird looks lately." She saw his eyes narrow in obvious displeasure. "So, I just want to make sure he's on check, a friendly warning if you will."

A pang of hurt went into her chest at hearing that, her expression sobering just a bit. It was at moments like this that she was glad he couldn't see her properly, or else she might have some explaining to do.

"It's always Izuki with you, huh..." She whispered low enough so it wouldn't reach his ears. She already knew it as a fact, but being reminded of it, especially on her alone time with him, did little to help her mood.

"Fine, I'll help!" She then declared in an upbeat tone, not wanting Naruto to figure out what she was feeling at the moment. "But you'll have to keep helping me with my training in return!"

"Deal!" He followed suit with a chuckle, to which she herself giggled in response. She knew it wasn't necessary, of course. After all, it wasn't like Naruto ever needed an excuse to help his friends.

That was one of the things she liked about him.

"I'm sorry, Midoriya." His gaze was low, as he found himself unable to look at her in the eyes. The feeling of shame and defeat at haven't let Uzumaki escape was still more than present in his head.

The fact that they then found an unconscious Hagakure, while the Villain that had organized this was nowhere to be seen did not help things either, especially since Mandalay hadn't reported about anyone except themselves leaving the building.

Meaning either the Villain had somehow managed to vanish without a trace, after knocking out Hagakure somehow, or...

Uzumaki had managed to get to them somehow.

"It's fine, Todoroki-kun." Midoriya's passive response as they both stood in front of the ambulance that was hosting the still passed out Hagakure only made him close his eyes, the feeling of failure weighting heavily on him. "We'll get him next time, I'm sure."

They didn't even know if a 'next time' would present itself after this blunder, but he could still only nod. As long as Uzumaki was out there, they weren't going to stop trying, that was something that all had promised.

He wasn't the only one affected by Uzumaki escaping, of course. From here he could see his father directing everyone to clean up the place, from having to move out the unconscious Villains they found down there, to handle the Nomu that Midoriya had knocked out, alongside the one Uzumaki had...killed.

And Mirko had just...left, apparently with the excuse of wanting to look around in case Uzumaki was somehow close. Of course, he doubted that, but outside of Endeavor telling her that there were reports that needed to be made, no one else had said anything to stop her from leaving.

"How..." He was only taken out of his thoughts by Midoriya's soft voice, her tone a mix of trepidation and hope. "How was he?"

That...was a difficult thing to answer, wasn't it?

He knew lying to her would be of no use, but even so, given what he saw, it wasn't exactly easy to explain.

"He was different." But he owed Midoriya that much at the very least. "Something...something must have happened to him, Midoriya. I don't know what but, it was his eyes...They didn't belong to the Uzumaki we knew."

He saw her grow stiff as soon as he finished, and he couldn't blame her for that. Even as unlikely as it had been, she had probably hoped that Uzumaki was still, well, Uzumaki, and that this was all some sort of misunderstanding.

But today he had seen a side of Uzumaki that he didn't even know existed.

"I see..." Midoriya's voice was barely above a whisper, her hair shadowing her eyes. Then, without missing a beat, she started walking away from him, earning his concerned stare.

"Midoriya?"

"I think I'll look around a bit more, maybe Mirko had a point..." Of course, he didn't have it in her to tell her that it was futile, so he could only offer her another nod before she zipped out of the place using her Quirk, with a sigh leaving his lips right after.

Today they had lost.

But something told him it was only the beginning.

"H-how do you do it..?" She asked in an amazed tone, just as Naruto finished waving at the group of kids that had stopped them just a few minutes ago.

It was something that started happening ever since the Sports Festival ended, and to say she wasn't used to it would be an understatement.

Surely, she wasn't the weird one, right? Anyone would freak out if adults and kids alike started gawking at you and asking for your autograph, right?

And yet, Naruto had no issue interacting with them in such situation. Heck, he even looked like he was enjoying the attention by a lot, rather than finding it embarrassing like she did.

"I mean, isn't it cool?" Naruto's answer came with an excited twinkle of his eyes. "People are already starting to recognize us, and we haven't even finished our first year yet!"

She...understood the appeal, of course, but still...

"Besides, shouldn't you be trying to get used to this?" He then asked, his smile turning into a teasing one she recognized quite well. "Or is our next Symbol of Peace going to have a stutter attack every time a kid asks her to sign their newest Deku action figure?"

She...had not thought of that.

As in, she had been so busy focusing on mastering her Quirk, alongside everything related to U.A that she had completely forgotten about that little detail.

She wanted to be the next Symbol of Peace, of course. To be the greatest Hero out there.

And with that, also came being a public figure, pretty much a celebrity with everything that it entailed.

Suddenly she swallowed, her mind only now coming to terms to the many, many things she would have to do if she reached the top.

Like having to sign kid's action figures.

Suddenly, the future didn't look so bright.

"Alright alright, it's way too early for a panic attack." Before she knew it, Naruto had put his arm around her. "Alright, I've decided, we're starting your training today!"

"M-my what?" Wait, what was he talking about?

In response, he just grinned, a glint in his eyes that was making her feel even more nervous than before, right before he guided her inside the bus they had been waiting for.

"Hey, everyone!" He then spoke, high enough so that most people would hear him, which almost made her choke on air alone. "This girl got second place on U.A's Sports Festival last week! How cool is that?!"

No no no, this could not be happening...!

"Why...?!" She squeaked out at him, just as the passenger's face started to light up in recognition. She knew what was coming now, and it almost made her whimper as a result.

"Trial by fire, Izuki! Where's your Plus Ultra?!"

This is now the Plus Ultra she wanted!

A tired breath left him, right as he closed the door behind him, frustration bubbling inside of him as a glare set itself in his eyes.

All of this mess, just for nothing? The information he had gotten from that fool had been barely worth the trouble, especially since it involved facing off against Heroes this time.

That, by itself, was enough to give him a headache. Of course, he had been prepared for it. He knew exactly what, or rather who, would be opposing him when he had decided to walk this path, and he had prepared himself for that, he truly had.

At the very least, he hadn't let his emotions run his judgement today, so that was good, specially considering his...condition, so to speak.

The headache was an awful reminder of that tidbit.

And all of it for what? To learn that Kurogiri was out there, seemingly giving Nomus to random idiots? Tied to Shigaraki his ass, this guy knew shit about Shigaraki.

That did raise the question of why Kurogiri, who was most definitly doing it on Shigaraki's orders, was giving out free Nomu to any Villain with wishes of grandeur.

Years ago, perhaps he would have understood, but right now he would have thought that Nomus were a commodity that shouldn't be just toss out on a whim.

So either Shigaraki was doing stupid shit again, or...

They had more Nomus than what everyone believed.

Another sigh left his lips, a part of him wanting to go back to see if he could get any more information. Interrogation had never been his forte, sure, but he was sure he had gotten as much as he could have from that guy.

It was easy when dealing with people that had no training in handling torture.

At the very least though, he did gain something from his last mission.

He took out his phone from his pocket, the screen shinning on his face as his lips slowly turned upwards into a smile at what he saw.

"The identity of the new Vigilante that started operations a few weeks ago has now been confirmed, by the HPSC itself, after a direct altercation with a group of Heroes, among them being our current Number 1 Hero, Endeavor. Uzumaki Naruto, age twenty-one and former student of U.A Highschool, became a public figure during his tenure at U.A, however he disappeared two years ago, at the end of the war, after evidence of his relationship with none other than All For One became public. The fact that Uzumaki Naruto was responsible of All For One's death, however, has brought into question the nature of their former relationship, especially now that he seems to be only targeting villains-"

Reports like those filled his eyes, as many news sites seemed to be rushing to bite out off whatever the HPSC had decided to reveal. He wasn't surprised by this though; in fact he had expected it as much. It was one of the reasons he even bothered facing against Endeavor's little team, rather than taking the sneaky way out.

It seemed he was now back into public consciousness.

There was only one issue though, which had his smile slowly turn into a frown.

They were using his old picture from U.A.

It shouldn't have surprised him, of course, given that it was probably the most recent one that they could find of him.

But even so, seeing that picture, even though it was his face right there...

It felt alien to him.

"Yes?" Fortunately, he didn't have to keep looking at it, given that he was forced to answer a call, and given who was calling him, it could only mean one thing...

"He's moving." Kaina's words were simple, yet effective, as his frown slowly turned into a grin once more.

Things were moving along just fine.

This was always meant to be just a tease, rather than a chapter focused on action and combat. We'll get those later.

More stuff hinted here too, will have to wait a bit for the answers.

Thank you all for having read this far. Interest in this story has been amazing, which is great! I've also posted it on AO3 if you preffer reading it over there!

Next Chapter: Hunt.