Kirishima stayed until there was only a half hour worth of time left, then went to go see the rest of
the class.
"Most of them are still unconscious," he admitted as he stood up from his chair. "The ones hurt by the gas attack apparently still have a lot of poison in their systems that needs to be filtered out. Yaoyorozu took a hit to the head and is still out too, but they don't see evidence of damage that would mean she won't wake up, or at least that's what the nurse said."
"Tokoyami and Dark Shadow are awake," Hitoshi offered.
"Yeah I saw Shouji go into their room, but I wanna go check in on them," Kirishima said. "Monoma was admitted too, and I wanna at least see how he's doing."
"Just from copying Aoyama's quirk?" Izuku wondered. "He told me he needed the belt but he didn't say it was that bad."
"Eh, Monoma wasn't used to what Navel Laser feels like," Kirishima sighed. "Apparently it made him really sick. I also just wanna get a look at the others, make sure they're . . . they're resting comfortably."
Izuku knew what he meant. Kirishima's quirk might have been a thick skin, but he was a tender hearted person. Likely the idea that his classmates were in pain and he couldn't do anything to stop it was haunting him. Seeing everyone sleeping peacefully might help put his mind at ease.
"Tell Monoma thanks for the save," Hitoshi instructed, and Kirishima nodded.
"I don't know anyone else here all that well, so I hope you don't mind if I just hang out with these two," Toogata said apologetically as Kirishima crossed to the door. "I'm under strict orders to keep Midoriya entertained for as long as the hospital will let me, so that he doesn't get restless and start thinking of ways to try and solve this case himself."
"I'm not that reckless am I?" Izuku whined.
"All Might and Sir want you recovering," Toogata insisted, still smiling knowingly. "They know you want to help, it's in your nature, but this is something better left to the pros. You just need a little distraction to keep your mind off your worries, and stop you from overthinking things."
"He's got you there," Hitoshi pointed out.
Izuku stuck his tongue out at Hitoshi, and his friend laughed. Honestly Hitoshi didn't know how right Toogata was, and neither did Toogata himself. Izuku knew he was probably thinking of when he'd first brought All for One's message to Nighteye's attention, and how Izuku had offered to serve as a distraction. Even though Toogata had no idea he and Nighteye had gone through with the
plan, he knew that Izuku had been willing to be his shield, enough even to suggest it himself.
"Give everyone my love too," Hatsume said, still tinkering with the force lance. "I don't wanna leave this half done, but I'll poke my head in everywhere on my way out."
"Sounds good," Kirishima said with his hand on the door. "I'll probably come by tomorrow too, so I'll see you guys later, alright?"
"See you then," Izuku said, waving along with Hitoshi and Toogata.
Once Kirishima had left, silence reigned for a few moments. Izuku had a few things he wanted to ask Toogata, but he hadn't wanted to say them in front of Kirishima, knowing that he too must be feeling powerless. Izuku just wanted to know what the pros were doing. Did they have any leads? Was there any way he could be of help?
"So," Izuku began hesitantly, "about Sir and All Might-"
"Nope!" Toogata cut him off brightly, still smiling. "No talk about the case! We're gonna leave it to the pros and not worry!"
"How can I not worry?" Izuku wanted to know. "My friend was taken! How am I supposed to be calm about that?"
"By remembering that the best heroes in the world are on the case," Toogata said confidently. "You're good Midoriya, but you're not better than All Might. Just have a little faith OK?"
"Can you at least tell us if they have any leads?" Hitoshi pleaded.
"Can't help you," Toogata gave an exaggerated shrug. "I don't know anything about what's going on."
"You're Nighteye's work-study student!" Izuku protested.
"I'm a work-study student with the Nighteye Agency," Toogata corrected. "Technically only Sir has been invited to consult, and even then I think he more invited himself. I was given orders to distract you as best I can and that's all."
"I don't know that you can distract me," Izuku grumbled. Toogata beamed. "I can do my best!"
He proceeded to do his best for the next half hour, telling jokes and regaling them with funny stories from his own days as a first year. Before Sir had picked him up he'd apparently been quite the clutz, and he wasn't shy about telling them all the situations it had gotten him into, including getting stuck halfway through walls and losing his pants at a number of inopportune times. Hatsume chuckled at a few stories, especially after she finished with the force lance, but Hitoshi and Izuku couldn't really get into it.
Eventually the sun was beginning to sink low in the sky, and visiting hours were almost over. Toogata didn't show any signs of leaving, even when Hatsume tucked away her tools, and Izuku wondered if he was going to wait to be kicked out just for a few extra minutes in the room with them. He was just beginning to think he should say something to shoo Toogata and Hatsume away when his phone suddenly went off.
It had been sitting on his bedside table beside the knife, and it buzzed loudly against the table top
when the message came in. It was one short buzz, the alert for a text message rather than a phone call or an email. The sound startled Izuku, as he didn't leave his phone out on tables much, and he turned immediately to see what it was. As soon as he realized it was just his phone he reached instinctively to pick it up and look, forgetting that he was avoiding messages from his mother. The text message wasn't from his mother though.
It was from Shouto.
For a few seconds he looked at his phone, too stunned to comprehend what he was seeing. Shouto? Shouto who had been taken? Shouto was contacting him? By text message? After a moment it occurred to him that Shouto might have been rescued and this whole thing might be over, so he thumbed the message open to read what it said. Unfortunately, it wasn't an assurance that everything was alright.
It was an address, followed by a two word message.
No heroes.
Izuku stared at his phone for another few long moments, trying to process what this meant. This message wasn't from Shouto. It was from someone who had Shouto's phone. Someone who had Shouto's phone because they had taken it from Shouto, because they were the ones who had kidnapped him.
The villains had texted him an address.
"Midoriya?" asked Toogata's voice.
Izuku's head snapped up, eyes widened to affect an innocent expression. "What?"
"You're staring at your phone," Toogata noticed, frowning slightly. "Is everything OK?"
"It's just my Mom," Izuku lied. "She wants to call. Do you mind leaving?"
Toogata, however, didn't look any less concerned with this explanation. "You look really pale," he said. "Are you sure you're alright?"
"Positive," Izuku said firmly. "Can you go? It sounds urgent."
Toogata looked at him for a moment, and Izuku got the decided impression he was being sized up. Then Toogata stood up, walked to the bedside and held out a hand.
"Give me the phone Midoriya," he said.
"No," Izuku said, clutching the phone to his chest. "It's just my Mom, I promise."
"Then you'll have no problem with me seeing that for myself," Toogata said.
"It's kind of private," Izuku tried.
"I won't read the message," Toogata assured him. "Just look at who it's from."
Izuku hesitated a moment, not sure what to say. Toogata reached to take the phone from him. "Back off!" Izuku snarled, the new and unfamiliar anger flaring up again.
"Midoriya I don't wanna take it from you," Toogata said firmly. "Give it to me."
"You don't have any right!" Izuku snapped, outraged. "You can't push me around just 'cause you're older and everyone likes you! Being All Might's favorite doesn't give you the right to demand things of me!"
Toogata looked startled, and he actually took a physical step back from the bed. Izuku was instantly swamped with regret, but he didn't loosen his grip on the phone.
"Izuku," said another voice, thin and reedy, and Izuku looked over to see Hitoshi staring at him with wide, distressed eyes. "Who's the message from?"
Izuku let his hands, still clutching the phone, fall to his lap. "Shouto," he admitted quietly. "Or at least, Shouto's phone."
"What does it say?" Toogata asked, still looking gobsmacked. "It's an address," Izuku said. "It says 'no heroes'."
Toogata immediately turned and made for the door. "I'll get Eraserhead-" he began, making panic spike through Izuku's chest.
"Wait!" he called, and thankfully Toogata stopped and turned back to him. "Didn't you hear me? It says not to involve any heroes!"
"The bad guys always say not to involve heroes," Toogata said, rolling his eyes in exasperation. "You don't need to listen. I'm going to find a pro, and then-"
"Toogata wait," Izuku said seriously. "I need to figure out what I want to do first."
"Look I know this feels personal," Toogata said placatingly, "but that could be the address where they're holding Todoroki. We'll need a team of heroes to storm the building-"
"Or it could just be a meeting place!" Hitoshi chimed in, startling Izuku and Toogata both with his vehemence. "If Izuku shows up with a bunch of heroes, or if heroes show up without him, what do you think the villains are going to do? Give us another address and try again?!"
"You're suggesting what?" Toogata demanded. "Midoriya goes there alone?"
"Not alone," Izuku protested. "The message didn't say alone. I can bring people with me, just not heroes."
"Cops?" Toogata wondered.
Izuku shook his head. "They'll want to involve heroes. Just you, me and Hitoshi."
"That's crazy!" Toogata shook his head in denial. "I'm going to-"
He turned to the door, then stopped short when he found himself nose to nose with the force lance.
"Sit down Chuckles," Hatsume instructed, then sparked the taser at the tip of the weapon. "We're gonna talk about this."
Toogata stared at her a moment, blinking. He glanced at Izuku and Hitoshi, and Izuku did his best to harden his expression. Finding no help there Toogata looked back at Hatsume, to find her no less determined than before. She might have been more than a foot shorter than him, but she was wiry and the force lance was a good weapon for her with its ability to extend. Eventually Toogata reached a decision and went back to his chair.
"You two have to know this won't work," Toogata began as Hatsume dragged her chair over to his so she could guard him. "The three of us aren't enough to rescue Todoroki."
"Not with a full frontal assault," Izuku said, throwing back his covers and swinging his legs over to sit on the side of his bed. In the other bed Hitoshi copied him until they were facing each other. "We'll sneak in, see if they have Shouto, grab him if he's there and sneak back out. Easy."
"Even a stealth mission is risky," Toogata insisted. "You have to pick your team really carefully-"
"This is the perfect team for a stealth op!" Izuku cut him off. "You can look through walls to give us advanced warning of what we're dealing with, Hitoshi can put anyone who catches us to sleep, and if we get into a fight we have your quirk's strength mutation and my analysis of the villains' weak points to at least get us to an exit where we can go for help!"
"You and Shinsou are first year hero students," Toogata persisted. "You don't have the authority to fight villains."
"We've dealt with that before," Hitoshi waved the concern away. "Izuku can't get in trouble for vigilanteism because he doesn't have a quirk."
"What about you?" Toogata pressed. "You don't have that excuse, and neither do I!"
"You have a provisional license," Izuku pointed out. "You have the authority to act as a hero during a crisis, and that means the authority to grant a hero student permission to use their quirk."
"I don't think it works like that," Toogata said, but he was starting to look unsure.
"Please Toogata," Izuku tried, hoping that an emotional appeal could widen the crack they'd made with logic. "Shouto's one of my best friends. He means the world to me. He's in danger and I can save him, do you really want me to risk his life by not following instructions?"
Toogata turned his eyes to the floor, looking conflicted. "I don't know Midoriya. This is really dangerous. Do you really think this is a good idea?"
"It's the best option we have," Izuku told him firmly. "Doing anything else puts Shouto in more danger. With you on our side we can avoid violating the villains' terms and breaking the heroes' rules. We can do this."
Toogata closed his eyes. He seemed to be wrestling with himself, trying to figure out the right thing to do. He just needed one more push.
"I just wanna save someone," Izuku said quietly. "Can you understand that?"
Toogata looked up. The tension had eased somewhat, but now he looked strangely sad. He stared at Izuku, and Izuku thought he had the look of someone carrying a great weight. Had Izuku put that burden on him? Or had it always been there?
"You should have been the successor Midoriya," he said decidedly. "Not me."
"Successor?" Hitoshi repeated in confusion, and for a moment Izuku wondered how he would explain that, but Toogata's next words were the perfect distraction.
"I'll do it," Toogata said.
"I'll come too!" Hatsume piped up, holding up two clenched fists, one balled around the force
lance. "If we just drop by UA I can grab some gadgets and-"
"No," Izuku shook his head. "Thanks Hatsume, but it's out of our way and we don't have time. Besides, I have something important for you to do here."
"What?" Hatsume asked.
"If we don't come back, I need you to tell the adults where we went," Izuku said, opening his phone and forwarding the text message to Hatsume.
Hatsume took out her phone when it dinged, then looked up at Izuku with sad, worried eyes. "Are you sure?"
"Someone has to make sure we've got backup," Izuku told her. "Also, did you notice anything odd about the force lance? When you were tinkering with it? Any new parts you didn't put there?"
"No," Hatsume said, perplexed. "Why?"
"Then I need you to do something else for me," Izuku said.
He grabbed the pocket knife off the bedside table, then stood up and went over to her. Hatsume stood up, and Izuku took the force lance and pressed the knife into her hands.
"Hold onto this for me?" he asked.
Hatsume looked at him, confused. Izuku didn't know how to explain, so he merely closed her fingers around the knife. She wasn't sure why he was asking, but by whatever she saw in his face she could understand it was important.
"OK."
There was no doubt in Hitoshi's mind about what they had to do.
Really it was the fact that Toogata said All Might was working the case that made it obvious. Hitoshi had been training under All Might for months now, and he'd fought All Might for his final exam. He knew that All Might didn't have a single subtle bone in his body; Aizawa said so all the time, and he knew stealth ops like no one else.
What they needed right now was information. They had no idea if the address Izuku had been given was the hideout where the villains were hiding Shouto or a neutral meeting place to discuss things. If Shouto wasn't there, then all they had was whatever the villains had been willing to give them. Breaking the villains' terms for the meeting would likely result in Shouto being hurt or worse. The only possible option was to infiltrate by stealth and assess the situation, while taking care not to violate the terms of the meeting in case they got caught. Izuku, Hitoshi and Toogata going by themselves was the only logical solution.
If a small voice in Hitoshi's head insisted that such thinking might be his guilt talking, he ignored it.
They asked for their clothes and dressed in whatever they had that was most concealing. Izuku ended up in a blue jacket with short sleeves, but with a hood to hide his hair. Hitoshi thankfully had a black shirt that was nice but casual, and wouldn't stand out either in the dark or on the street. Toogata had only the clothes he was wearing, but they thankfully weren't too obtrusive.
When visiting hours ended no one came to check the rooms and shoo out guests, so Hatsume stayed in Izuku and Hitoshi's room to make their excuses for as long as she could. When they had left the hospital in Hosu Izuku had been snuck out the back, so he knew where to look for doors leading to a back exit. They headed into the forest around the back of the hospital, then looped around until they met the main street and made their way to the train station.
"The address is in Kamino Ward, Yokohama City in Kanagawa Prefecture," Izuku read out the directions from his travel app once they were on the train. He had not spoken the address aloud, likely to avoid tempting Toogata with second thoughts. "Our travel time will be about two hours from here. We should arrive around ten tonight."
"I'm gonna take a nap then," Toogata announced, settling more comfortably into his seat. "You guys slept all day, but I woke up early to my phone blowing up, and I've been running around since then."
"Get some rest," Hitoshi advised. "We all need to be awake and alert for this."
He had grabbed a can of coffee at the station, but he hadn't opened it yet. As the view sped by out the window he considered doing it now, then decided to save it for when they got closer. He felt like he'd rested enough for a year, but now wasn't the time for inconvenient bouts of tiredness.
The closer they got the more a terrible kind of excitement was growing in Hitoshi's stomach. Soon, they would arrive at the hideout. Soon, they would face the villains. Soon, they would rescue Shouto, or at least know what had become of him. Somehow the idea of getting to rescue him was much more real to Hitoshi, even though he knew that didn't make it more likely, and he found himself strangely eager to reach their destination. He wanted to see Shouto again, even if the circumstances were awful.
"You OK?" asked Izuku's voice, drawing Hitoshi out of his thoughts.
"Fine," Hitoshi said, then threw a glance at Toogata across from them, but he seemed to be already asleep. "Just thinking."
"I keep running over scenarios in my head, with the information I have about the villains," Izuku told him, tugging on his lower lip. "The lizard villain isn't much without his sword, and the woman who was with him mostly seemed to fight with a big weapon covered by a cloth, so if we can catch her without that she should go down easy. Toga likely has knives equipped most of the time, even at a safehouse, but she's chatty, so you can probably catch her with your quirk without much trouble. I don't know much about the bodysuit guy, but he didn't seem to have a ranged attack, and we know Mr. Compress needs physical contact, so as long as we keep our distance we should be fine. The real threats are Shigaraki and Dabi, and Toogata's ideal for fighting them with his Permeation since they can't hurt him if they can't touch him, so I think we should be in the clear. Still Kurogiri could be trouble if he-"
"Izuku," Hitoshi interrupted, turning his body away from the window so he could face Izuku more fully. "It's OK. We'll talk strategy when we're closer. We don't even know what we'll be dealing with, so there's no point in speculating too much."
"I have to have a plan," Izuku said, shaking his head vigorously. "It has to be perfect, nothing can go wrong. I'm asking you guys to take a big risk to support me, so I have to make sure everything goes off without a hitch."
"We're not doing it for you," Hitoshi reminded him. "We're doing it for Shouto. You're not burdening us by asking us to be here, we're here because we want to rescue someone."
"It's my plan though," Izuku said. "I was the one who got the address. This is my op."
"Don't elect yourself team leader so quickly," Hitoshi tried for a teasing tone and didn't think he quite made it. "I think the guy with the provisional license would take offense."
Izuku was quiet for a moment, looking down at his knees. When he spoke it was barely above a whisper, and his eyes clenched shut as though he were fighting tears.
"I should be going alone," he said. "Shigaraki wants me. I'm the one who pissed him off, me, so I should take-"
"Hey hey hey," Hitoshi cut him off, making Izuku look up at him with wide, wet eyes. "Do you think you're the only one who feels guilty here? Shouto being taken is on both of us, the villains were there for me too, and I was the one who needed rescuing from them! If Shigaraki's pissed at you that only got him to make a mistake, and that's why we have this information. You were the one doing what you were supposed to and I was the one-"
"Hitoshi," Izuku said, reaching out for him, and Hitoshi flinched away to wipe at the tears that had begun to spill out the corners of his eyes.
"It should have been me," Hitoshi said, pressing on his eyes until it hurt as though to punish them for their weakness. "I should have been the one taken."
"Don't be stupid," Izuku said. "Ideally none of us should have been-"
"But if someone had to have been," Hitoshi cut him off. "It should have been me!"
"Why?" Izuku demanded. "So the press could vilify you? So everyone could say it was inevitable that you would join them? So that your loyalty could be called into question for years into your hero career? So that the people who doubted you from the beginning would always have that little bit of doubt to hold onto, because you were alone with a villain one time, and maybe they tried to recruit you?"
Hitoshi stared at him, shocked and a little bit horrified. It was terrible, but he had to admit it was true. If he had been the one taken, that would have followed him his whole life, whether he was rescued or not. It would have been the end of his dream as it might have been.
"Shouto's honestly ideal to be the one kidnapped," Izuku said, sitting back into his seat and glaring at the empty one across from him. "He has a bright future and everyone knows it. Heroes will be lining up for a rescue op if it comes to that. No one will doubt his loyalty because he was a target."
"If one of us had to . . . to not get rescued though-" Hitoshi ventured.
"Doesn't matter," Izuku snapped. "We'll get him back. I'm going to save everyone, and no one's going to die."
No one had mentioned death before. They'd all talked carefully around it, mentioning danger and risk but never the possibility of actually being killed. He'd expected it to be scary, to hurt, but somehow when Izuku said it the possibility felt like a ridiculous hyperbole. No one was going die. Of course no one was going to die.
"You're right," Hitoshi said, the tension in his shoulders easing somewhat.
"I've been told I often am," Izuku said, with a small smile. Then he seemed to realize something, and quickly dug into the pocket of his shorts. "Could you do something for me?"
"Sure," Hitoshi said, then swallowed when Izuku pulled out his black eyeliner pencil. "Can you draw on my heart?" Izuku asked, pointing at his left cheek.
"Yeah," Hitoshi said, voice unexpectedly rough. "Come here."
Izuku shifted and leaned toward him. Hitoshi took hold of the bottom half of his face to hold him steady, trying to ignore the soft warmth of his skin. He could smell the hospital's cheap shampoo in Izuku's hair, and feel his breath on his lips. He drew the heart carefully, not wanting to mess up, not wanting to let go.
Finally it was finished, and he released Izuku and capped the eyeliner pencil. "There."
"Thanks," Izuku said, leaning over to examine his reflection in the window. "It makes me feel . . . more like a hero."
"You look like a hero," Hitoshi told him. "A very pretty, glamorous, pretentious spotlight hero."
Izuku shoved his arm playfully. "Jerk."
If Shouto were here, this would be the part where he said something extremely flirtatious but made it sound simple and matter of fact. You always look like a hero, he'd say. Or I think you look beautiful. Hitoshi wanted the courage to say things like that, but he figured he'd leave them to Shouto.
Soon, Shouto would be here to say them himself. *
Toogata woke up when they were about a half hour from their destination. Izuku had spent much of the time he'd been asleep doing research on his phone. He didn't have too many resources, but he could plot their destination on a map and find a street view with public software. Thankfully Kamino Ward was a heavily trafficked place, so the images were relatively up to date.
"These were taken at night," Izuku said, showing the others the street view on his phone, "but we can't see any lights inside. However, there are signs advertising a bar on the second floor. It's possible the villains are using that as a front for their meeting place, or as a cover to disguise their hideout."
"Either way, we can assume they have control of the whole building," Toogata said thoughtfully. "We'll need a way in that they won't expect us to use."
"You can just get in through a first story wall, right?" Hitoshi suggested. "You don't need a door."
"Only my hero costume can pass through solid matter with me," Toogata said, shaking his head. "If I try that in street clothes I'll end up naked, plus without some way for you to get through I'll be in there alone."
"It's best we use Toogata's power for scouting mostly," Izuku agreed. "I can't see a way in besides the main door from this view of the front of the building, but if we look at this map-"
Izuku swiped at his phone, showing where he'd zoomed in on a map of the surrounding area.
"-we can see that there's an alleyway that leads around the building next door so we can approach it from the back. It runs to the next street over, so we can approach without drawing attention to
ourselves."
"Can we really bank on there being an entrance back there?" Toogata wondered.
"There's got to be at least a window," Izuku insisted. "Even if it's guarded, if they can hear Hitoshi's voice he can knock them out even from outside."
"Alright," Toogata said with a sigh. "What about the villains? What happens if we get caught?"
"First we play along," Izuku said. "We might be able to learn something if we talk to them. If it becomes clear they're going to hurt us or Shouto, we attack."
"Any advice?" Toogata asked.
"Only two have ranged attacks," Izuku told him, "and one requires a bulky weapon it would be inconvenient to have equipped all the time. Watch out for the guy with the patchwork face shooting fire and everyone else should be weak to a quick, hard smash. Mr. Compress, the guy in the mask and tophat, runs the highest risk of incapacitating you before you can hit him, so maybe throw something at him first and then go in for a smash. Hitoshi, you do your best to catch Toga in case she decides to start throwing those knives, and see if you can keep Patchwork distracted. I'll sneak up on him and tase him; he's not too big, so I think one zap should knock him out. Kurogiri, the mist guy, has a warp gate power, but he'll likely be using it mostly for defense, and to extract the other members if it gets too hairy. If you can get a clean shot at his neck armor that's ideal, but otherwise leave him so they have the option of running and leaving us alone."
"There could be more we don't know about," Hitoshi put in. "How do we know we've seen all the members?"
"Only three were arrested last night," Izuku said, "which means the woman with the big weapon and the man with the lizard mutation were probably retrieved from their fight with the Pussycats by Kurogiri. Everyone else was at the extraction point, and anyone who wasn't there was found by the cops later. I think it's safe to assume the only villain at the hideout who wasn't at the training camp will be Shigaraki."
"OK," Hitoshi said, looking back at the phone with its displayed map. "Sounds like a plan." "Describe the villains to me," Toogata insisted. "Then I'll call it a plan."
Izuku spent the rest of the ride describing each villain in as much detail as he could remember, along with what he had gathered about their quirks and fighting styles. At several point Toogata interrupted like he thought Izuku was finished, but Izuku persisted until he had explained everything. By the time the announcement that they had reached Kamino Ward rang through the train, Toogata had all the information Izuku could give him.
Kamino Ward was crowded when they arrived, and mostly with adults. Izuku quickly realized they stuck out obviously as students, so Hitoshi suggested they duck into a discount shop for disguises. These consisted mostly of a nice hat to cover Hitoshi's hair, a suit jacket for Toogata, and swapping Izuku's blue hoodie out for a thicker black one. He even found one with faux leather sleeves, and roomy pockets to conceal his force lance. It didn't have body armor, but it looked enough like his hero costume in stealth mode that it made him feel more confident.
Following Izuku's map they made their way up the next street over from the one the hideout faced. The alleyway was narrow, but walking single file they managed to slip through, until they came out into a wider space between the two buildings. Thankfully there were no windows on the upper
stories, likely because they were meant to contain more private businesses, but on the ground floor they found what they had all been hoping for.
"A back door!" Hitoshi whispered, immediately moving to walk towards it.
"Hold up!" Toogata hissed, snagging him by the back of the shirt to hold him still. "Let me go first!"
Toogata knelt down to the ground to poke his head through the door, the better to go unnoticed by anyone standing guard.
"There's no one there," he reported once he pulled back. "It's just a hallway and a staircase to the upper floors."
"Alright," Izuku said quietly, heart hammering in his chest. "Let's get inside."
By sticking his head and his arm through the door Toogata was able to undo the lock, and the door swung open to admit them. There was indeed a long hallway, likely running the length of the building, with five doors at varying intervals along the walls. Izuku knew there could be anything behind any of those doors, so he tread lightly along the wooden floor.
Toogata pressed his ear to the first door and listened. Apparently hearing nothing he crouched down and stuck his head through. When he pulled back out he shook his head, his expression one of disappointment. Nothing.
Izuku pointed at the next door.
The checked three more rooms with similar results before the came to the door on the left side of the hallway closest to the stairs. Izuku had been getting progressively closer to actually holding his breath the closer they got to the staircase. He did not want to go up it and find out what was waiting on the second floor. Then, almost as soon as Toogata peered into the room, he immediately jerked his head back.
"It's Todoroki!" he whispered triumphantly. "He's alone!"
Izuku's heart leaped, relief flooding through him like cool water on a hot day, but he clamped down his excitement. They needed to be smart about this. They couldn't alert the villains to their presence now.
"Carefully," Izuku instructed.
Toogata slowly unlocked the door. It made a metallic click that seemed to echo through Izuku's whole body, but probably wasn't actually very loud. Then the door opened, to reveal a smallish storage room. There were wooden boxes stacked against one wall and a table with a television on it pushed against the other. There was a cot against the far wall, and in the middle of the room was a chair, where Shouto was seated with his head in his hands.
He was crying.
"Shouto!" said Izuku and Hitoshi at once.
Shouto's head jerked up, his eyes wide with shock. "You two! What are you doing here?!"
"We came to rescue you!" Hitoshi whispered fervently. "Did you think we were just going to leave you here?"
Shouto let out a shuddering sob, then stood and made for the door. Izuku and Hitoshi went to meet him, and as soon as they were within reach Shouto threw his arms around them and drew them close. The three of them ended up in a tight group hug, clinging to each other with all their strength. Izuku determinedly blinked back tears. Now was not the time to be getting emotional.
"How did you find this place?" Shouto asked, still not letting them go.
"The villains sent me the address," Izuku told him. "I think they wanted to set a trap, but they don't know we're here yet."
"On that note," said Toogata, sounding more anxious than he had since this whole adventure started, "we should probably think about leaving! Group hug later!"
Shouto released his grip on Izuku and Hitoshi. They all unwound their arms from around each other, but when Shouto drew back Izuku could see his expression was one of apprehension.
"I can't go with you," he said gravely.
"What?" Hitoshi hissed. "Of course you can! We're busting you out!"
"You don't understand," Shouto shook his hand. "I can't leave him here."
"Leave who here?" Izuku demanded.
"Touya," Shouto said, and Izuku's heart lurched. "The villain who shot blue flames is my brother."
It made a sort of sense, Izuku realized. Fire quirks were by no means rare, but ones that could do more than light a cigarette were usually related to plenty of others. If Touya had run away from home as a child, perhaps even tried to fake his death, Endeavor wouldn't have wasted much time looking for a child who wasn't his masterpiece. It made sense that someone so abandoned by society would turn to a life of villainy, especially with an organization that might help him get revenge.
It certainly explained why Shouto had jumped through the portal at least. "Holy cow," said Toogata. No one paid him any attention.
"OK," Izuku began, taking deep breaths to steady himself. "New plan. You go upstairs and get Touya. Try not to be seen, but if anyone finds you say Shigaraki let you out. Tell him you want to talk to him downstairs and once he's down here we grab him and bolt. Even if we have to use Hitoshi's quirk, we should be able to get far enough away before they notice to grab the attention of a hero, and then we should be in the clear."
Shouto stared at Izuku for a moment, his expression unreadable. It wasn't his usual blank look of indifference -- indeed it was charged with emotion -- but Izuku couldn't identify what it was. Finally Shouto closed his eyes, apparently overwhelmed by what he was feeling, and instinctively Izuku reached out to place a hand on his shoulder.
"Shouto," he whispered. "We have to act now-"
"I know," Shouto said, voice low and trembling. "I just . . . there's something I have to say." "Can it wait?" Izuku asked, throwing a quick glance at the door.
"No," Shouto shook his head. "I've just been thinking. I never thought I'd get to see Touya again.
And, what if something happens and I never get to see either of you again? There's something I have to tell you-"
"Shouto," Hitoshi said firmly. "Not now. I know what you're gonna say and this is not the time."
"I think it's the perfect time," Shouto argued, leaving Izuku scrambling for a grip on the conversation. What was he going to say? "I don't want it to be the only time, but I just have to tell you that I-"
"Well well well," said a voice from behind them, and Izuku and Hitoshi whirled around to see Shigaraki standing in the doorway. "What have we here?"
He was leaning against the doorway like he'd been listening to them for several minutes, even though Izuku was sure he hadn't been there before. He had his disembodied hands on, clutching him all over his upper body, and one of them over his face so that only one lurid red eye was visible. Immediately Toogata moved to block his view of the three first years, but Shigaraki merely tilted his head so he could look Izuku in the eye.
"Looks like my little ruse worked," Shigaraki continued when none of them spoke. "Caught a few NPCs too, but that doesn't really matter. This is between you and me, Midoriya."
"I won't let you hurt him!" Toogata declared boldly.
"Don't be stupid," Shigaraki snapped. "You couldn't stop me even if I wanted to, and I don't. I just want to have another friendly little chat."
"After how the last one turned out?" Izuku asked, halfway between taunting and genuinely perplexed. "I seem to recall you running scared."
"I'm not scared anymore," Shigaraki assured him. "I've done some thinking about what you said, and I want to discuss some of my thoughts with you. I think we have more in common than you want to admit."
"Indeed," said a new voice, deep and crackly with static.
Izuku's head whipped to the side, to see that the television on the table against the wall had lit up with an image. The screen displayed the head and torso of a man, but he was nearly unrecognizable as such, his face concealed in a complicated helmet covered in tubes and machinery. Izuku now noticed something he hadn't before: a camera like a webcam sitting on top of the television. The little red light was blinking, indicating the camera was on. The man could see them.
"Master," Shigaraki rasped in surprise, and Izuku's heart nearly stopped.
Shigaraki's master could only be one person.
They were talking to All for One.
"It seems All Might didn't want to face me, so he sent his successor instead," All for One said smugly. "How fortunate for me. Well done Tomura, for luring him here."
Izuku's mind was suddenly consumed by a single realization. He had led All Might's successor into the den of the League of Villains. He had brought All for One's quarry directly to his door. All for One could not be allowed to find out that Toogata was the new bearer of One for All, not under any circumstances. Izuku had to be as convincing as possible, to keep All for One's attention on him.
"If you think you've caught me you're mistaken," Izuku said, leveling his gaze at the camera and forcing as much steel into his voice as his fear would allow.
"And yet here you are, without any police or heroes, just a couple of students for backup," All for One taunted.
"Do you think the new Symbol of Peace needs cops or other heroes to beat the likes of your petty underlings?" Izuku demanded haughtily, throwing back his hood to stand proudly before the camera, as close to All Might's iconic stance as he could come. "I'm not afraid of you!"
"Midoriya?" Toogata breathed, turning to him with an expression of shocked betrayal. He had arrived at the obvious conclusion.
"Perhaps not," All for One said, sounding no less smug. "Why don't you and I have this discussion somewhere more private?"
Izuku felt bile crawl up his throat, faster and thicker than he'd ever experienced. He opened his mouth to vomit, but something black and sticky -- like hot tar but cold to the touch -- came out instead. It spilled out of him like a burst fire hydrant, enveloping him in foul-smelling sludge, reminding him forcibly of the first time he'd been attacked by a villain and nearly suffocated to death. There was no All Might to save him this time.
"MIDORI-" Toogata screamed, but he was cut off as the black liquid engulfed Izuku completely.
With a splash Izuku landed on the floor, coughing and retching as he tried to get the last of the stuff out of his mouth. He pushed himself shakily to his hands and knees, eyes still closed against the flood, not daring to open them just yet. Once he could breathe again he took several deep breaths, waiting for someone to say something.
No one said anything. Not Toogata. Not Shigaraki. Not Hitoshi or Shouto. It was as if he were alone.
Izuku opened his eyes and looked up.
He was kneeling in the middle of a bare concrete floor. The edges of the room were dark, as if he were under a spotlight. No one, none of his friends, not even Shigaraki was there with him. He was alone, in an unknown, unfamiliar place, isolated from any help that might come. As he tried to control the frantic beating of his heart, the way his skin crawled and his head spun, a pair of shiny shoes walked into view. Izuku looked up at the man wearing them.
All for One stood over him.