"We've caught movement outside the house, someone moving alone," the voice of a hero crackles
through the speaker, "Has the operation already begun?"
"What?" Naomasa's head whips towards the radio they have set up in the police's surveillance van. "No one should be moving yet."
"They've scaled the wall and are approaching the house!" the hero hisses through the speaker.
The detective curses, "Who is it. I'll have their license suspended if the operation goes south because of them."
"It's no one I recognize, they're carrying a staff. T-They've entered the house and are now engaged in combat!"
"A staff?" Naomasa breathes, eyes widening. "What kind of staff, it wasn't a pipe was it?" The speaker crackles to life again. "It's hard to see, but it's possible."
Tsukauchi pushes himself up quickly as he turns to Nighteye and his intern. "We need to move now, it's gotta be Piper. Mr. Brave please keep an eye on him."
"Detective," Sir says, fingers folding in front of his face. "We can't move yet. A majority of the team isn't in position. If it's Piper then he'll have to hold out for a while longer."
"Nighteye!" the man exclaims, "Piper isn't any older than Lemillion!"
The speaker crackles to life again. "They're dragging out two individuals now, both have been restrained!"
"He's my age?" Naomasa's eyes snap towards the hero's intern, a grim look in his eye as he nods. "We can't just leave him in there then." Mirio turns towards the older hero. "I've at least had training for situations like this."
Nighteye sighs. "The fact that that boy has made it this far is a testament to his skill. Everyone should be in position soon, he'll have to hold out until then."
"The target is entering the building again!"
"Piper disappeared for almost an entire week before showing up at my doorstep," Naomasa cuts in. "He never disappears without a reason. There's a strong possibility that he could still be recovering from wounds that we don't know about."
"This is dangerous for more than just him," Sir states, gaze hardened. "Rushing in could put lives
on the line."
Kogane raises his head at the vigilante's appearance. He looks only half conscious, exhaustion pulling at the lines on his face. "More gold?" He murmurs, still partially asleep judging from his muted reaction.
You.
"She's not the only one who needs saving right?"
Midoriya curses. I didn't think you'd be here. Forgive me.
The vigilante strides towards the bed. The action rouses the man as he quickly pushes himself up.
"Let's go. Your sister's waiting on you." Piper tells him quietly, offering the man his outstretched hand.
Kogane's eyes widen at the mention of his sister. "Who are you? You're not with the others?"
"I'm not," the boy assures him, "I'm a vigilante. Your family's been worried about you." Piper's outstretched hand does not waver. Getting Kogane out is now one of his top priorities. He'll still needs to search the rest of the house before he'll be able to leave, but this man had suffered too. Making sure he got away is just as important. They could be keeping her in the attic, that one officer the other day mentioned there being an attic. If she's as important to them as they're making her out to be then Kogane could be a decoy to make people think there's no one else being held here.
Midoriya's eyes flicker towards the door, watching for movement and listening for any sounds in the rest of the house. "There's a woman passed out on the couch, and I've got two guys tied up outback. If we're gonna get you out of here then now would be the best time."
"That's only three," Gizō murmurs.
Midoriya glances back at him. "What?"
"Usually there's one more."
His fingers tighten around his staff. "Is it a little girl? Someone else they're keeping captive?"
"What?" The man looks confused. "No. You said the woman was asleep so it'd be another guy, an adult. And, I don't think they're keepin' anyone else here."
The vigilante's heart falls. "So, there's not a little girl that stays here? Have you ever heard her mentioned? Her name is Eri, she's got white hair an–"
A voice cuts the boy off from the hallway, "It seems a rat has found its way in."
The vigilante whips around towards the door, already on the defensive at the sound of the unknown voice.
"Fraternizing with the enemy, are we Kogane-kun? Life's just full of surprises, huh?" "S-Setsuno-san," Gizō stutters.
A beak mask stares back at the duo from the doorway, freezing the fifteen-year-old's heart.
Memories of that night surface unwillingly, fed by his inner demons.
"Because of that I can't say that I particularly hate you Mr. Vigilante."
"Overhaul warned us that ya might show up looking for somethin' that doesn't belong to ya."
"But, remember this child, if you come looking for my things again, you'll find that any usefulness you may have once had will have run out."
The mask is different, and the man it's attached to is different as well. The blonde of his hair is the antithesis to the dark, feathery strands he was witness to some two weeks ago. Midoriya's heart slowly unclenches, but that fear is still there, still thriving beneath the gaze of that beak-like mask.
"I didn't think ya'd have the guts to show up after what he said he did ta ya."
Midoriya doesn't have time to hesitate. Even with his sun flaring with the fear of death in his chest he can't afford to falter. He can't afford to lose with Kogane still sitting behind him, for both their sakes, for Eri's sake, for the sake of everyone else he plans to save after this.
The vigilante brings his staff up, aiming his attack at the underside of the villain's chin.
Setsuno steps back with a practiced ease, avoiding the blow as he draws the katana sheathed at his waist, taking up his own defensive position. "I won't be underestimatin' ya."
"That's unfortunate," the fifteen-year-old says with more confidence than he feels. "It would've been nice to see your shocked face when I kick your ass. Well," he pauses, feigning to think it over, "I guess I'll still get a chance to see that."
"Yer holdin' yourself up to quite the standard aren't ya, saying so easily that yer gonna beat me." "Gotta be confident. I've got people counting on me you know."
"Ha! That's fer sure. I'll be countin' on ya to die for me then!"
Midoriya dodges the first swing of the katana, dancing away from the blade. Swords are dangerous weapons, ones that are meant to keep your opponents at a distance. There's a sharp screech of metal against metal as Setsuno parries the vigilante's next blow.
Months of playing at vigilantism has gotten Midoriya uncomfortably close with the usage of quirks. Weapons, on the other hand, were a rarer sight to see. He'd dealt plenty with bo staves in the dojo and it wasn't uncommon to find a criminal weilding a small knife if their quirks weren't suited for the situation. But, the vigilante can't say that he's ever faced off against someone who knew how to use a katana before.
Just treat it like a bo staff, he tells himself, trying to calm his racing heart, a very sharp, very deadly bo staff . He lures the man further into the room, watching from the corner of his eye as Gizō hastily stands, hiding along the wall, staying out of the way of the two's clashing weapons. Midoriya urges the man towards the door with a jerk of his head. Midoriya slips past another swing of the villain's blade. He gives Kogane a nod of reassurance as the man pauses at the room's doorway. "The backdoor!" the vigilante calls over the clash of metal.
Kogane gives the fifteen-year-old a silent nod that he doesn't see before he disappears out the door.
Setsuno's blade flashes in the dark, another screech of metal filling the room as Piper deflects the blow.
"Ya can't play defense forever now Mr. Vigilante. And sendin' him off on his own? There's more than just me here."
The boy grits his teeth. Please be safe.
Suddenly a call goes up from the living room, the voice of a woman echoing down the hall.
"Heroes! Heroes are outside!"
"Everyone is in place, begin the operation, Mr. Brave, Cycler, and Rock Lock through the front, the assigned police personnel will follow them in. Remaining support heroes make sure you keep the house circled and be ready to offer assistance and capture anyone who tries to flee," Nighteye's voice crackles through the team's radio comms. He turns towards Naomasa. "Take Lemillion with you and go through the back. Once we breach the front wait ninety seconds before going in. If you run into Piper you'll probably be the only one with a chance of convincing him to stand down peacefully."
Setsuno freezes at the warning cry, eyes snapping towards the hall. The vigilante takes his chance, jamming the end of his staff into the man's diaphragm. If heroes are here then I don't have time to be fighting like this . The villain hunches over with a wheeze of pain and Midoriya slams his elbow into the man's exposed back. He can't tell how much damage it does, but he takes it as his chance to dart out of the room to follow behind Kogane.
There's chaos in the living room. The woman from earlier is wide awake now, staring determinedly at the door, her hands glowing yellow as she presses them against it. There's banging coming from the other side of the door, blows hard enough to shake it in its frame. "Setsuno-san!" she shouts, "I can't hold them back much longer!" Midoriya can hear the strain in her voice.
The vigilante continues his sprint for the kitchen. I need to get out of here, I can't afford to get caught. They'll be able to check the rest of the house for Eri.
He skids into the kitchen, eyes spotting Gizō as he tries desperately to pry the backdoor open. "Open it!" Piper shouts, closing the distance between them.
"I can't!"
Midoriya's eyes jerk back towards the living room. "A quirk?" he mumbles.
The vigilante catches movement in the shadows of the living room and quickly shoves Kogane into the corner next to the backdoor. A warning of, "Stay down!" on his tongue as he dodges a swing from his opponents katana.
"She sure has a great quirk right? 'S really useful like this. Sad thing is that it can only be used in a small house like this. But s'long as she's still standin' no one can get in," Setsuno says, smile rising behind his beak-like mask, "and no one can get out. We're on lockdown Piper, and before time runs out I'm gonna make sure I kill ya properly this time."
Midoriya feels ice in his veins before he quickly takes the defensive.
The vigilante counters a blow from the villain's sword with a swing of his pipe. "If there's one thing I 'ave to do tonight," the man breathes, "It's make sure that yer dead body ends up in the news tomorrow. That's the least I can do to thank Chisaki-san. He gave trash like me purpose. So I'll kill all the heroes here and repay 'em."
"That man knows no kindness," Midoriya hisses, shifting his stance to one of attacking. "He kills too easily. Hurts others too easily." The vigilante sends another jab with his pipe towards the man's stomach. The villain slips around the blow just in time, dodging the worst of the damage, though the staff still scrapes past his side.
Setsuno lets out a grunt of pain as a smile twitches at his lips. "I can do that too."
The villain jabs his sword forward faster than the fifteen-year-old can pull back from his previous attack. Unlike with the vigilante's attack, the katana lands center mass. Midoriya can feel its impact, can feel the fear of death flare up, burning star-like in his chest. He's scared of dying again.
It hurts. But, with the boy's bulletproof vest the wound will do nothing more than bruise.
Setsuno looks surprised, brows rising. "A quirk?"
The vigilante lets the man believe what he will. That fear of dying still burns hot in his throat, but subcomming to it now would mean death. The boy works deftly, grabbing for one of the escrima sticks at his waist as he quickly pulls it up, connecting it with that of the sword still pressed against his chest. Setsuno sees it coming, letting go of his weapon and avoiding the electrocution. It would've been better if he hadn't dodged, Midoriya thinks as the sword falls to the ground, but he's weaponless now, so it's still a decent outcome. Izuku quickly slips his escrima stick back into his belt as he kicks the sword away, sending it skittering across the tiled floor, far out of reach of his opponent.
The vigilante takes up a fighting stance as the villain charges at him, staff ready to strike out at any moment until it disappears from his grasp. Setsuno is still covering the distance between them when Midoriya watches the pipe disappear from his grasp and materialize instantly in his opponent's hands.
His quirk.
Midoriya scowls, but merely shifts his stance to a more defensive one. "You act like I need a weapon to kick your ass."
The vigilante dodges a swing from his stolen staff and slips past a clumsy imitation of his previous jab.
He hasn't teleported his katana back to him. Is there a reason he can't?
Midoriya slides one of the escrima sticks from his belt and watches as the villain's eyes hone in on it. Setsuno drops one hand away from the pipe and almost instantly the weapon disappears from the vigilante's gasp, fingers clenching around nothing but air.
Can he only use his quirk when the object is in someone's hands? What about eyesight? Does that have anything to do with it?
The villain tosses the weapon over his shoulder and Midoriya watches it clatter to the far side of the room. "Didn't you just say that you didn't need a weapon to kick my ass?"
Midoriya ignores the taunt. "Where's the girl?"
Setsuno instantly picks up on the topic of conversation, a caustic grin creeping across the man's face. "You'll never find her. Even if I told you exactly where she is there'd be nothing you could do."
"So you know where she is." Midoriya's hands reaches for one of the smoke grenades attached to his belt. "That's all I needed to know." The vigilante pulls the ring from the canister, but keeps his fingers clenched around the handle release trigger. The villain's eyes catch on the object in his hand and within seconds the grenade is in the other's grasp, handle no longer held down.
"I was hoping you'd do that."
There's a small pop before verdant smoke begins flooding the room.
"Team A has broken through! Now engaging the enemy!"
Naomasa turns towards Lemillion, counting the seconds. There's a nervous worry that presses against his chest, but there's determination clear in his eyes. "Get ready, we'll be going in soon."
The vigilante spins, sending a spiked boot flying for the man's face as the sounds coming from the living room get louder. The villain dodges as expected, leaning back to avoid the blow as the beak mask takes the brunt of it instead. But, the spikes catch in the leather, dragging the man with the downward swing of his leg until the mask's clasps break and Setsuno stumbles back. A mix of grim determination and anger settle over the villain's features as the mask falls lifelessly to the floor, a small knife sliding out of it and skittering across the kitchen tiles. The vigilante releases a war cry that sounds more desperate than intimidating as he charges forward, slamming his fist into the man's jaw with enough force to break it. The villain stumbles, legs turning doughy beneath the blow, stars overtaking his vision.
Midoriya takes his chance, knocking the feet out from under his opponent and dropping down with him.
"Tell me where she is!" He shouts, voice breaking as he throws another punch at Setsuno's face. "Where is she!" he screams. The fear he's felt and the frustration and the anger and the powerlessness he's faced rises within his chest. They act as fuel for his sun, making it burn brighter, hotter, so hot that Izuku can't stand it. He feels tears welling, blurring his vision. They sizzle against his cheeks as his insides burn with the build up of every emotion he's felt over the past two months. He burns with the culmination of all his righteous fury. "Where is she!" he screams again, throwing a third punch at Setsuno's face then another, and another. Again and again. He bloodies the man's face and breaks the man's jaw. "Where is she!"
"Tsukauchi, Lemillion, you're cleared to enter." "Copy that." Naomasa nods in Mirio's direction.
The two can hear shouting coming from inside the house now and Mirio quickly activates his quirk, phasing his head through the door to survey the situation. He pulls back. "The room is filled with green smoke, possibly a quirk. There seems to be some sort of fight going on towards the center of the room and there's another person cowering near the door. He's wearing quirk suppressant cuffs so the possibility of it being a detained villain is high."
Tsukauchi gives a stearn nod before turning the knob and throwing the door open.
Beneath his gloves the skin of the vigilante's knuckles bruise and break and bleed. Naomasa steps into the kitchen, weapon drawn in preparation of a fight.
The smoke is a thick green, but as soon as the door opens it begins flooding out into the cold night air. The detective covers his mouth and nose with the inside of his elbow, trying to see through the verdant haze.
"Lemillion!" He calls over the sound of fighting from the other rooms, gesturing towards Kogane who still cowers in the corner. "Get that guy out of here!"
The teen nods, lifting the man up bridal style before slipping back out.
Through the smoke he can see a pipe laying on the floor and Tsukauchi feels his heart speed up.
Piper . Then, through the dissipating haze of green, he sees him.
"Piper!" he shouts, "Piper!" Naomasa takes a step closer, coughing as he calls the boy's name. Midoriya's fists slow to a halt as he straddles the villain beneath him, breathing labored. The fifteen-year-old slowly leans back to stare at the damage wrought by his trembling hands.
The teen looks towards Naomasa, blood splattered across his mask and his gloves and his face and everything is the same color as that vibrant scarlet eye. "She's not here," is all he says, "She's not here. I don't know where she is if she's not here. He won't tell me."
The detective lowers his weapon. He's never seen the vigilante look so human before, has never seen him look quite so boyish.
"He won't tell me." Izuku stumbles his way up, numbly grabbing his staff as he goes. "She's not here," he repeats, this time more to himself. "Somewhere else then." The vigilante turns, making to leave.
"Piper!" Naomasa calls after him. But, the boy doesn't stop. "Piper," the detective says again, raising his weapon with the name. "I'm placing you under arrest."
The boy pauses, turning to glance over his shoulder. "For what?" he asks despondently, "For saving people? I can't even protect one little girl. What makes you think that I can save anyone?"
The detective falters at the words, caught off guard.
"How could I have done any of the things that you're about to accuse me of when I can't even do this right?" The vigilante stares at the floor, pied eyes dull. He raises a gloved hand, studying the blood glinting beneath the kitchen lights. He clinches it into a fist, a new light flaring to life in his eyes. Naomasa's never seen such foreboding light in the eyes of someone so young. "If you're going to arrest me for something then it should be for the crimes I'm going to commit," the boy hisses. "I'm going to hunt that bastard to the ends of the earth if that's what it takes to save her. He should've kept me dead," Midoriya spits, lips pulled into a sneer behind his mask. "I won't let him have her. I won't be so weak next time."
The man doesn't know what it is that keeps him in place, watching as the boy turns, walking out the door. It's only the low groan that the detective hears from behind him that snaps him out of it. He slides his weapon back in its holster and drops down onto one knee to inspect the injured man. Tsukauchi grimances at the sight.
The vigilante strides out of the house, eyes immediately honing in on the few support heroes who have taken over the backyard. He addresses them directly, "Detective Naomasa needs backup ASAP! One of the villains has been taken down and needs immediate restraints and medical attention!"
"Right!" One hero nods before quickly jogging past him, hands already wrapped around a pair of the quirk suppressant cuffs like the ones Reo cut off him.
"There was another man inside, someone should have brought him out already. He's been held captive by the Precepts for the last six month, please make sure he's taken care of. His living conditions while he was with them are unclear."
One of the support hero's eyes widen in shock. "I-I'll go inform the others! Everyone assumed he was one of the villains."
The vigilante nods. "Please take care of it."
Another hero approaches the boy, it's someone he recognizes, but as he is now he can only remember that she's a support hero. "Are you injured?" She asks, eyes roaming his figure for damage, she must lock into the splattering of blood on his face because she immediately turns to a hero that he only remembers the quirk of, some type of costly healing quirk. "Salve can y—"
"I'm fine," the vigilante cuts in, "The fight is winding down, but it's not over. There may be people worse off than me. Save your strength."
"Ah, h-hai." Midoriya makes to stride past them. "Where are you going though?"
"I've got information to give to everyone up front," is all the boy says before disappearing around a corner.
"Do you know who that was?"
"No idea. Maybe it was Nighteye's intern?"
"I thought that was the kid who carried that other guy out though?"
Naomasa bursts out of the house, eyes hardened with determination. "Where's Piper?" Tsukauchi finds no one but the startled group set to guard the backyard and curses. The detective strides towards the nearest hero. "The vigilante with the pipe, where is he? Did you already catch him? Is he with the police already?"
"V-vigilante?" The man stutters, eyes widening as he turns to look at where the boy had disappeared. "I thought he was one of us. H-he said he had a report to give to everyone out front."
Tsukauchi curses, hand running violently through his hair. Why did I just let him leave? He was right in front of me. He brings his walkie talkie up to his mouth. "I need an immediate APB out on Piper. He should still be in the area. Don't let him get away."