Chapter 25: Ikkaku
As Izuku and Yui made their way to the Height's Alliance dorm, Ochako was waiting for Izuku. She looked at Yui for a second, before she seemingly got an infodump, and asked, "Last bond?"
"Yeah," Izuku said, rubbing the back of his head.
"Mm," Yui replied, happily.
Ochako sighed in relief, "At least now we don't have to worry about who's next. I hope," Ochako said, shivering. "With your Quirk we never can tell. In any case, Jiro-san told our group that she talked to you, and I just wanted to make sure you're okay…"
Izuku let out a deep breath, "I'm mostly fine, but it does hurt. Like, if I knew you were listening in, I wouldn't have minded it, but I wish the choice wasn't made for me. How much did you hear?"
"Ashido-san and Tokage-san pressured Jiro-san into using her speakers about the time when Tokoyami-kun was talking…" Ochako mentioned.
Izuku smirked, "Ah, so they didn't overhear Kirishima-kun and Tetsutetsu-kun claiming that they were interested in them? That's some karma."
Ochako began to snicker. Yui made no sound, but was just as amused.
"Any problems on the girls' side?" Izuku asked.
"Yanagi-san and Komori-san are a bit embarrassed," Ochako offered. "Shiozaki-san seems out of sorts, like she's divided by zero or something, but she wasn't ranting about the immorality of it all, which I think is a good sign? And I was going to warn you that Kodai-san had an intense look on her face, but…"
And with that, she reeled from an infodump about Yui wanting to date Izuku, but leaving it aside out of respect for her. And the two of them knew Ochako was learning that information…
"You know, I love this Quirk?" Izuku said. "Even with all these headaches it's caused me, I love it. I used to always feel like there was this manual to social interaction that everyone else had read and I hadn't. Now I've got all these hints to it, and it's making it easier to handle everyone, not just you girls…"
Ochako ruffled his hair affectionately, "I think we'd still be together regardless. But, yeah, I'm glad it's speeding things up, too."
Yui looked at them and, seemingly getting permission via bond, also began ruffling his hair. "Fluffy," she whispered with awe.
He enjoyed that sensation for a bit longer before he said, "I should go and see if Eri's willing to come down."
The three of them reluctantly stopped and entered the dorms.
Izuku and Inko were each holding one of Eri's hands as the elevator took them down. Smiling, Inko said, "Remember, Eri-chan, if you want to leave, you can just say the word and we'll let you."
Eri nodded.
"They're all my friends," Izuku said, smiling as well. "They're training to be heroes just like me and Mirio-senpai."
"Like the girl with the pink chipmunk cheeks and the girl with the long hair with the twisty things and the clear girl?" Eri said.
"Exactly!" Izuku said. "Their names are Ochako, Nejire, and Toru. It's okay if you mess up names sometimes. There's a lot of people."
Eri nodded.
As they got off on the first floor, they walked into the common room. Eraserhead was there, having instructed the class that Eri had a dangerous Quirk, that she'd been through a lot and that they shouldn't crowd her, and that if she was scared of any of them, not to take it personally.
It was at that point that Inko stepped forward, "Hello, everyone! I'm Izuku's mother, Inko Midoriya. I've been hired by U.A. to help take care of Eri-chan. It's a pleasure to meet you all."
After the class chimed out their greetings, Izuku came in with Eri at his side, shyly staying close to his leg. As cautious as she was, she wanted to be brave.
"Ohmygod, she'ssoadorable!" Mina whispered, practically vibrating in her seat, struggling not to go over and cuddle her immediately.
"Hi, Eri-chan!" Ochako smiled and waved.
Eri shyly waved back and said, "H-hi, Ochako…" she said shyly.
Mina began to bite down on her fist to prevent her from squealing. Toru seemed to be covering her mouth as well. Itsuka was absolutely ready to go over and give her some comfort.
Of course, things started to go off the rails when she gazed over at Fumikage. She went stock still and began to tremble, before she ducked behind Izuku.
"Eri? What's wrong?" Izuku asked, concerned.
"Overhaul… one of his people is here…" Eri said, tears silently pouring out of her eyes.
"Oh. Oooooh…" Izuku looked at Fumikage, and said, "Chisaki wore a plague doctor mask. You know, one of those that looks like a beak?"
"Ah," Fumikage said. "I can assume, then, that others in his organization had similar attire?"
Eraserhead nodded, "Our information shows that a number of Chisaki's yakuza underlings wore similar masks."
"Then I will leave for the young girl's peace of mind," Fumikage said.
Dark Shadow popped out from his chest, "Awww. I wanted to meet her… Fumi, let's get some apples, then."
Eri perked up at the mention of apples, then noticed Dark Shadow, "He has a Blackwhip, too?" she asked, confused.
Izuku and Fumikage shared a look that screamed "roll with it". Izuku turned to Eri and smiled, "Yeah, Dark Shadow is a lot like Blackwhip."
"Hiya!" Dark Shadow replied, waving at the girl, who was apparently not sure what to do. On the one hand, he looked like Chisaki's men did. On the other hand, he had a Quirk like the Blackwhip that saved her, that comforted her, that protected her…
"The biggest difference is that Blackwhip cannot think or talk, but Dark Shadow can," Fumikage said.
"Oh how wrong you are, kid," Daigoro said smugly.
"Jury's still out about the 'think' part," Nana grumbled, to which Daigoro laughed.
"Fumi and I are each going to have an apple. Would you like one?" Dark Shadow asked her.
She may be confused and afraid, but Izuku was there to protect her. She looked up to him, and he nodded. She replied, "Okay…"
With that crisis averted, several of their other classmates introduced themselves. Shortly after Fumikage and Dark Shadow returned, along with apple slices for Eri, it became too much for her, and she left with Inko to go back to the apartment.
"So, if anything happens to that little girl, we riot," Mina stated to the collected members of 1-A. There was general consensus agreeing with her.
It was about that time that Mei burst into the room, "Izuku! We have a successful prototype baby for our actual baby!" she said, holding up a piece of clothing proudly.
Izuku choked, "For the last time, I'm not her dad." The other students began to giggle as Melissa showed up behind her.
"Behold the first Hatsume-Shield collaboration!" Melissa stated. "Using our state of the art fibers, we have a garment that's as functional as it is comfortable! Stain resistant, machine washable, resistant to cuts and bullets, alongside general heat and cold resistance and a temperature control system to stay comfortable in the hottest summer or the coldest winter!"
The garment was a onesie made to resemble a narwhal. The high pitched squeals from several of the girls made Kyoka wince in pain and Shoji flinch in his room in 1-B's building.
"Oh my, that is just precious!" Momo gasped, holding a hand to her mouth.
"Mm," Yui added appreciatively.
"I can appreciate you coming here from the Support Department to show this off," Itsuka said, equally appreciative of the adorable piece of clothing.
"Oh, no, we came from our rooms on the fourth floor," Mei stated outright.
"Wait, you're living here?" Itsuka asked in surprise. "Why?"
"'Clerical error' on Nezu's part," Melissa said, making the air quotes with her fingers. "And if you believe that, I have some swampland to sell you."
Denki looked at Izuku, "What did you have to do to get your life like this, dude?"
"Be treated like a second class citizen for most of my life, then All Might found me under a bridge getting suffocated by a slime monster," Izuku stated.
There was a pause, then Denki followed up with, "So, karma looked at you, saw that you hadn't had any good luck in years, then gave it all to you at once, plus interest?"
"Seems like it," Izuku shrugged.
Kyoka had a light blush as she stared at Denki, "Okay, seriously, you have too many good lines for your dumb ass. What, do you have a learning disability or something?!"
Denki started to respond, then shut his mouth, and thought about it. "Wait, do I? How would I even know?"
Kyoka's blush increased as she buried her head in her hands, "Oh my god, I'm doing so much wrong today. I'm sorry, I meant that as a joke, not as some kind of mean comment..."
"No worries, if anything, that's helpful," Denki stated, his eyes wide like he wasn't sure what the world was like anymore. "How do I even find out?"
"I believe Hound Dog has some resources as our school counselor," Itsuka stated.
"Once we find out if you have such a disability or not, we can add any special accommodations to our study sessions," Momo added. "Hmm, it's rather convenient, now that these dorms exist we will be able to better organize those sessions."
"Maybe we could all choose a dorm room even if we're not living here exclusively?" Setsuna offered. "Just in case those sessions run long and we can't make it back home in time, we'll be able to get more sleep and be able to attend class on time?"
There seemed to be consensus, but that train of thought was derailed when Tsu got up, turned to Mei and Melissa, and stated, "We seem to have forgotten the most important thing: getting Eri to try on the onesie."
"Gang Orca's been hounding you for pictures, hasn't he?" Izuku asked.
"Twice daily," Tsu replied.
While the entire class was a bit much, Eri was happy to see the smaller contingent of girls coming to meet her along with Izuku. The gift was well received, Eri happily ran around the apartment in the narwhal onesie, as Tsu dutifully took pictures, sending them to her mentor.
She wore it for the rest of the day, clearly enjoying the feel of it and the gift.
Shortly after Eri went to bed that evening, the Midoriyas received a visit from Nezu. The mammal looked grim once he was let into the apartment.
"We have news about Kai Chisaki," Nezu stated.
Izuku and Inko both flinched, Inko looking worried, Izuku looking determined. "What happened?"
"During his transportation from his holding cell to Tartarus, Chisaki was subjected to a form of warping Quirk. He was surrounded by a foul smelling liquid and disappeared from his cell. This occurred last night. Today, his corpse has been found in a sewer, with evidence of a violent struggle."
Inko gasped. Izuku's eyes widened, but he went into analysis mode, "That doesn't match Kurogiri's Warp Gate… Are there any registered Quirks that match that description?"
"There is one, belonging to a man who went missing four years ago. The quirk allowed him to teleport to the location of any individual he was familiar with, or to teleport that individual, or anyone in close proximity, to his location," Nezu explained.
Izuku nodded, "Then we should operate under the assumption that All for One is in possession of that Quirk and used it on Chisaki with the intent of stealing his Quirk. Probably restoring All for One to full health in the process."
"I concur," Nezu said, watching as Izuku's face fell. "Until we find evidence to the contrary, we will operate under that assumption. Though, our investigations into the officers guarding him revealed that none of them were colluding with All for One."
Izuku pondered this, then turned to the principal, "Check their Quirk registries, including previous alterations. See if any of them were late bloomers or had Quirk awakenings or drastic changes to their Quirk's description. There might be a possibility that one of them was working for All for One unintentionally."
"All right, Midoriya-kun, we've put it off long enough, I must insist on nurturing this analytical talent of yours," Nezu said, a dangerous glint in his eye.
"Never thought I'd be tutored by a treeshrew, but I'm happy to learn from the premier intelligence-based Hero!" Izuku said proudly.
"Aha! Excellent!" Nezu said, ecstatic. "The common treeshrew is indeed the species that has been most extensively spliced into my DNA! However, it was not my birth species! Still, a wonderful deduction and we'll be discussing this further during your next free period!"
With that, the principal left. Inko looked to her son and said, "Are you sure you're safe with him?"
"Even if I wasn't, nobody could stop me," Izuku said, eyes gleaming.
"So what the hell do we do now?"
Rikiya Katsukame was the one to ask the question, but the sentiment had brewed throughout the ten masked individuals.
"We haven't yet been able to develop the bullets," Hari Kurono, aka Chronostasis, said. "We have some of the temporary ones, but even if we still had Eri, without Overhaul and his Quirk, we cannot create new ones, much less the permanent versions."
"Would it even be worth it, without him at the helm?" Toya Setsuno asked.
"You ungrateful swine!" Joi Irinaka, aka Mimic, cried out from within the doll-like cloak form he possessed. "You're gonna piss away the second chance Overhaul gave you?"
"Well, I don't give a rat's ass myself," Kendo Rappa replied. "The only reason I joined in the first place is because I wanted to one day defeat Overhaul. That ain't happening anymore, so, you guys can fuck right off, as far as I'm concerned."
Letting out a sigh, Hekiji Tengai rubbed his temples, "I suppose that, with Overhaul gone, I have no reason to continue keeping you in check."
"There's others who're rebelling," Yu Hojo stated. "Those who didn't care about Overhaul's plans. Either we leave, they leave, or we fight and the organization splits anyway."
"Is this the end?" Soramitsu Tabe asked. "Do we let our boss's dream die? Do we continue as a normal Yakuza organization?"
"Well, I have a proposition for you…" came a voice from outside.
From behind a corner came the lanky form of Tomura Shigaraki, with the misty Kurogiri walking behind him.
"The fuck?!" Shin Nemoto called out. "How'd you get in here?" He used his Quirk, Confession, on the newcomers.
"I possess a Warp Gate Quirk," Kurogiri answered. "Finding the coordinates of your hideout was simple when we questioned some of your lesser members."
Nemoto snarled, "Were you the ones who abducted and killed our boss?"
"No," Kurogiri responded.
"I have no idea who killed your boss," Tomura stated, unaware of his Sensei's activities. "What I do know is who's responsible for his capture…" He held up a photo of his green haired Player Two onto a table using two of his fingers and his thumb.
Setsuno used his Quirk, Larceny, to take the photo from Tomura's hands into his own. "That Sports Festival kid?"
"Yup. Calls himself Kyuseishu. However much I hate All Might, I hate this griefer even more. If not for him, your boss would still be here," Tomura stated. "Here's my offer: Join the League of Villains. We're going to be attacking U.A. and this fucker's target number one. You guys get your revenge."
"I don't give a shit about revenge," Rappa stated. "But if I can get a few good fights in, I'll join you."
"Perfect. Welcome to the party," Tomura smirked behind the hand serving as a mask. "Any other takers?"
His smile grew as, one by one, the top members of the Shie Hassaikai accepted his offer.
Few things were as cool as flying.
Following her introduction as T.A. for Foundational Heroics, Nejire decided that she and Izuku would dedicate their next afternoon to train him in aerial tactics, as he was one of the few members of 1-A who could fly at similar speeds as she could. Right now, they were training in basics, which covered basic flight etiquette, dealing with aircraft, and hand signals to communicate in absence of some form of equipment.
Of course, the aerial maneuvers turned into what was essentially an airborne game of tag as they flew across one of U.A.'s training grounds. When their time was up, and they descended to the ground, Izuku had a huge smile on his face, "That was so much fun, senpai!"
"It's Nejire-chan," the girl pouted.
"That was so much fun, Nejire-chan-senpai!" Izuku amended.
At that, Nejire giggled, "All right, Izu-kun. From now on, you have to call me that."
"Of course!" Izuku said as they began to walk towards the main campus.
"Do you have some way to stop the bugs and dust and stuff from hitting you? I have to keep a bit of Wave Motion around my body to stop that from happening," Nejire asked. Similar to his own initial talks with Ochako, the bond was telling her not to immediately bombard him with the next set of questions.
"Full Cowling, even at its lowest percentage, essentially acts as a minor shield," Izuku replied. "Protects me from that sort of thing and keeps the air resistance from tearing at me. How bad is the energy drain? Does it affect your speed?"
"Oh, it's fine! Like, I've got a lot of energy to burn and as I use my Quirk the stores get bigger, so now I can just go NYOOM whenever I need to. It was hard at times, 'specially 'cause Wave Motion is so slow because of moving in spirals. But thanks to flying I can close the gap easily! No need for speed if I can shoot 'em point blank!" Nejire said at high speeds.
Izuku produced a notebook and dutifully began writing the details down, and was about to ask another question when Nejire noticed two people along their way, grabbed Izuku by the wrist, and rushed over with an enthusiastic "Hi~!"
"Hey, Nejire-chan! And hey, you brought my kouhai!" Izuku realized that he was now standing in front of Mirio, smiling brightly.
"Mirio-senpai! Good to see you!" Izuku said. "Anything new?"
"Well, I got assigned as T.A. for 1-B's Foundational Heroics classes!" Mirio stated proudly. "I even have a room in their dorm to solidify that! We were actually going to head over to your building and see Eri-chan!"
As the older boy said that, Izuku noticed that Mirio was with a boy with indigo hair and pointed elf-like ears. This was Tamaki Amajiki, the only member of the Big Three he hadn't yet met. Silver medalist in the Third Year's Sports Festival. Fatgum's longtime intern. Certifiable badass.
And when Izuku approached, Tamaki ducked behind Mirio and muttered, "Too much interaction."
"Oh my, he's you from back at the Entrance Exam!" Nana said sympathetically.
"Poor guy," En added.
"Maybe you could hand One for All to him for a few days?" Daigoro offered. "Just so we could help him the way we did you?"
I am not trusting my relationships to the embers of One for All, Izuku replied. Out loud, he said, "Eri-chan will love seeing you again! Let Amajiki-senpai know that we don't have to interact if it's too much for him… wait, I shouldn't be speaking about him as if he's not here! Oh no, I'm doing it again! I'm sorry, Amajiki-senpai! Wait, you might not want me talking to you directly! Oh no…"
As Izuku panicked and went into distressed muttering, Mirio and Nejire began to laugh. As they did, Tamaki poked his head out and saw Izuku spiraling.
At which point, he found a wall and pressed his face into it, "Great, I hurt someone like me…"
That seemed to snap Izuku out of social anxiety into hero-friend mode, "Are you okay, Amajiki-senpai?"
Mirio laughed and patted Izuku's shoulder, "It's okay. Tamaki-kun just gets like this sometimes. Don't worry, Tamaki-kun, this is my kouhai from the Internship, Izuku Midoriya!"
"Oh, yeah, Yaoyorozu-san mentioned you…" Tamaki mumbled. He turned around and bowed, "Nice to meet you, Midoriya-kun." He then returned to facing the wall.
"Oh right, you work with Fatgum!" Izuku perked up. "Oh wow, I have so many questions about how your Quirk functions!" He opened his notebook, then paused, remembering Tamaki's predicament, "But I can wait on that…"
Tamaki hummed in appreciation at that.
"Tamaki-kun, Izuku-kun and his mother are the ones taking care of Eri-chan. We might as well go along with them!" Mirio said brightly.
"Sure," Tamaki turned around, his head down, eyes pointing away. "If you don't want me there, that's fine."
"Nonsense, Mirio-senpai told me about you, I was hoping I could meet you!" Izuku said. "I actually was hoping I could see how you manifested tentacles! One of my techniques lets me grow tendrils and I was wondering if you had any ideas… Not that you have to!" Izuku said, realizing he might have been overstepping. "You don't have to if you don't want to…"
"Well, if you think I can teach you something, I suppose I could try… but be warned that I'm not good at this and you'd probably be better off finding someone else…" Tamaki muttered.
"Oh my god, you're so alike! How cute!" Nejire squealed in delight.
"Come on, let's go, guys!" Mirio said, walking towards the 1-A dorms.
"I apologize for intruding on your afternoon, Midoriya-kun," Tamaki muttered.
"It's no trouble, Amajiki-senpai! If you're a friend of Mirio-senpai and Nejire-chan-senpai, you're a friend of mine… You can also call me Izuku if you want," Izuku offered.
"You don't have to accommodate me if you don't want to," Tamaki replied. "I know I'm not as fun as my friends are…"
"Not at all," Izuku said, worried. "If you don't feel comfortable using my first name, that's fine! I was just offering!"
"If you're on a first name basis with my best friends, you might as well call me by my first name, too. You know, if you want to address me at all," Tamaki said.
"If you're okay with that, T-Tamaki-senpai! But if you change your mind, please let me know!" Izuku said.
"All right, this kid needs help, but if he causes you to backslide, Izuku, I will annoy you into getting Shinso to brainwash you so I can take the wheel and smack him one," Nana said fiercely.
Nejire leaned towards Mirio, "Tamaki-kun's confidence…"
"Yeah…" Mirio said.
"I can't believe how much it's improved since the Internship!" Nejire cheered.
"I know, I'm so proud!" Mirio smiled.
"I'm home!" Izuku announced as he entered the fifth floor that served as his and his mom's apartment, removing his shoes. To the Big Three, he said, "Make yourselves at home, I'm going to check that Eri's in the mood for visitors…"
When he stepped into the living room, he found Tsu reading a picture book to Eri. Momo had made some toys to serve as props while she read. Ochako and Yui were doing schoolwork while this was happening.
Yui and Tsu, as usual, had perfect poker faces. Momo was blushing, but maintained composure. Ochako was pure red and trying not to stare at Izuku. Still, the bond made it crystal clear that all four of them were bracing themselves.
As soon as Eri saw Izuku, she beamed at him and called out, "Papa!"
Izuku froze.
"What," was the response of every single one of the vestiges.
"Mei-chan's going to be sooooo smug," Nana commented
Eri curled in on herself, "Mama Tsu said I could choose who I wanted to be my papas or mamas… Do… you not want…" she trailed off.
Immediately, Izuku snapped out of it, "No, Eri-chan! If you want me to be your Papa, I'd be very happy to be! I was just surprised!" He knelt down and gave her a hug. Eri started to cry happily as he did.
To the gathered members of his group with Stage 2 Bonds, he said, "What on Earth?!"
"We read a book about families, Eri had questions, we said she could choose her family since she didn't have one, so she said she wanted you to be her papa, and that we were her mamas and we weren't expecting that," Ochako said in a blur.
"Also, your mom's out on errands with All Might as a bodyguard, ribbit," Tsu added.
"Duly noted. I'll save the freakout for later," Izuku thought as he pulled Eri back and wiped away her tears. "Hey, Eri-chan, Mirio-senpai's here with Nejire-senpai and a friend of his you haven't met. You want to say hi?"
"Yay! Papa Mirio's here!" Eri cried out. She ran out to greet them.
"Okay, not the only Papa, that's a little better. Kinda rude to talk like this when Yui can't," Izuku said, trying to keep himself calm as the group walked to the entryway. "Anything I should know about?"
"Inko-san asked us to babysit," Momo said. "Mei-chan and Melissa-chan are still at their respective labs. Toru-chan is currently giving a… talk … to Jiro, Ashido, and Tokage."
The tone in Momo's voice when describing that made Izuku nervous. Before he could reply, Momo said, "You may have forgiven them, dear, but I still require time."
Any argument Izuku may have had evaporated at the warm feeling he had when Momo called him "dear."
That evening, after Inko recovered from her deluge of tears and Eri went to bed, the polycule was hanging out in Izuku's dorm room. With his room on the fifth floor serving as his actual bedroom, he'd turned the dorm into a study room, as well as a place to hang out with fellow students. He had his desk, his bookshelves, his computer, a couch, a low table, and a number of beanbag chairs.
"So, what was that weird feeling I got from you about Mirio-kun and Tamaki-kun?" Nejire cut to the chase.
"Ribbit, I thought I was blunt," Tsu commented. Mei was fidgeting with some machinery next to her and was too focused on that to join the conversation.
"It was an odd combination of jealousy and… self-flagellation?" Momo said.
"Do we have to worry about you kicking one of us out?" Yui asked, voice nearly a whisper. As toneless as she was, they could tell she was joking. Mostly.
"No!" Izuku denied. "It's… it's something stupid."
"You can trust us, Izu-kun…" Ochako said warmly.
Izuku took a deep breath, "I saw the two of them interact and Mirio-senpai told me how he and Tamaki-senpai were friends since elementary school, and, well… I got reminded of Bakugou and I couldn't help but feel jealous, even though I shouldn't, because I have so much better people in my life now."
"Wasn't Bakugou the one who bullied you for being Quirkless?" Melissa asked.
"Wait, Quirkless?" Nejire asked. "You were Quirkless? When did your Quirk come in? Wait, is that why it's called Decade Force?"
"Yes," Izuku cut her off. "Got it the day of the U.A. entrance exam. And yes, Melissa, he was the one who bullied me, but I'd known him forever, he was my best friend before his Quirk came in and mine didn't, and up until U.A., he was the only person who really… acknowledged me? I guess?"
Toru, fully visible, sighed, "Some people… So, basically, you saw two old friends being friendly and you wished that was the relationship you had instead of the one you actually had?"
"Got it in one," Izuku said.
Momo gracefully placed her drink on a coaster, "A feeling of jealousy would be perfectly natural in that case. You shouldn't beat yourself up for it."
Nejire put a finger to her cheek, "But, wait! Mirio-kun and Tamaki-kun aren't just friends, they're boyfriends!"
Izuku's blush increased as he stammered out, "Y-yeah… I kn-know. M-Mirio-senpai told me…"
"So why be jealous of their relationship when it's not the one you wanted with - Ohhhhh…" Nejire trailed off as the implications hit her.
Toru looked at him with sad, sparkling eyes, "Did he know?"
"Yes… He didn't take it well…" Izuku rubbed his arm.
There was a pause as that sank in. Mei finally looked up from her work.
Ochako's expression turned dark, "Wish I could have neutered that little Pomeranian when I fought him."
Yui, without saying a word, walked to where Izuku was sitting and hugged him. That began a rush for a group hug.
With a sickening crunch, Rikiya Yotsubashi, or as he was known to his present company, Re-Destro, crushed a replica of Izuku Midoriya into paste, his right arm enlarged and blackened. A second Izuku followed suit, followed by another. At the end, as he was panting with exertion, he turned to his colleague, voice and demeanor chipper, and said, "Thank you so much, Skeptic! I needed that bit of relief! Had to work off that excess stress, after all!"
Tomoyasu Chikazoku, aka Skeptic, nodded, his long hair obscuring his eyes, as he sat on a stool with a laptop, "Happy to serve you, Grand Commander. I'd have given you more, but we're out of usable furniture."
"No need. I just needed to drain a bit so that I could function more easily," Re-Destro waved his subordinate off. "Draining myself entirely would be a mistake. I normally wouldn't wish to empty myself of fuel for my Meta Ability, but I have so many sources of stress lately…" He managed to say this with a smile. "Speaking of, how goes our plan for the little brat?"
Skeptic frowned, "Could be better. The boy's fairly good at hiding his online presence, and trying to get anything out of U.A. wouldn't be worth the effort even if that were possible. Messing with the mouse would hang a target on our heads. The most we have are cyberbullying social media posts from former classmates, his parents' divorce when he was two, and apparently, he cleaned a local beach."
"Nothing good enough for a defamation campaign, he'd look like too much of an underdog," said a blue skinned woman, Chitose Kizuki, aka Curious. "I tried interviewing former teachers and classmates, but anyone willing to say anything bad has a legal trail a mile long. Any attempts to cast him in a negative light could be spun against us. Many of those that don't have a villain ranking could easily get one if we bring it to public attention."
"How did that happen?" Re-Destro asked disbelievingly.
"Combination of an investigation uncovering a mountain of evidence of crimes, and an old clause in the registration laws," Skeptic said the last two words with complete disdain. "If the victim's a null, the villain rank goes up a letter. A former classmate with a fantastic Meta Ability got labeled as an A-Rank because of it."
"Tell Trumpet to make repealing that clause a priority," Re-Destro stated. "If we can't show a throwback their place in this world, our liberation means nothing. I mean, seriously, an A-Rank? For exercising his own freedom?"
"Villain rankings by the HPSC are always subjective," Skeptic said. "In this case, they claimed that his use of his Meta Ability counted for aggravated assault, and, in some cases, attempted murder. There were hundreds of recorded incidents, against a number of people with weak Meta Abilities as well as the null. And the last incident occurred on U.A. grounds. Not to mention his Meta Ability is highly destructive, so they were likely pressured to raise the ranking to B on that alone…"
Re-Destro paused. "Perhaps we can use that young man…"
Skeptic shook his head, "Thought about it, but the kid's been arrested, tried, and placed in Ketsubutsu's rehab facility. Not worth the effort right now."
Re-Destro scowled, "We need to find some way to undo him! That little stunt of his at the gala cost us millions! Not to mention that there's no way he could have legitimately gained a Meta Ability with that damn toe joint! He's done something to steal that power! The Quirkless have had their era, and now they are nothing more than the societal equivalent of the appendix! If we do not remove them, they will either remain useless lumps of flesh or strike back and kill us!"
"It's a pain how Quirks got rid of a useless toe joint, but not the deadly appendix," Skeptic muttered.
"Perhaps we need to look at it from another angle," Curious responded. "Maybe our more official channels can't defame him, but we can still use his image to help our cause. Skeptic, his performance in the Sports Festival caused some upheaval, no?"
"Indeed," Skeptic scowled. "He's caused the throwbacks and those with weak Meta Abilities to venture beyond their station."
"So we use that to drum up support from the bottom," Curious offered. "Use the scenes of his fight while toning down his Meta Ability. Frame it as the symbol of the nulls rising up against people with superior Meta Abilities. We paint that picture, and we'll have people flocking to the cause."
Re-Destro shed tears, "A wonderful plan, Curious!"
"I'll get the ball rolling," Skeptic said. "Once you craft the perfect posts, the bots will get them trending in no time. We'll find forums ripe for infiltration and influencers who we can onboard to the cause. Even if they don't turn, we can use them to spread our rhetoric to the masses."
"It shall be done," Re-Destro stated, holding his thumb and forefinger to his forehead. "All for the liberation of Meta Abilities!"