Nezu hummed as he read the email that Shouta had received from Naomasa.
He was privy to almost all of the work-related emails in the building, and the email addresses of the police officers his employees worked closely with were a high priority for him to keep track of. According to the email, a 'new' vigilante was running around the city, who had tipped off the police about a human trafficking ring.
And while the police, and Shouta, hadn't seemed to make the connection, It was almost painfully apparent to Nezu that Izuku Midoriya was their man. Not only did the boy live within walking distance from the building, but he also seemed to have come into contact with a spirit that had been on Nezu's radar for a while, who was teetering on the edge of becoming an evil spirit.
Going through his own personal security camera network wasn't hard from his office computer, and he scrolled through the list of just barely legal cameras he'd set up around the surrounding city to keep track of certain interests. A slideshow of various dilapidated buildings crossed his screen until he found the one labelled 'Human Ghost - not yet domain level - Potential Evil Spirit.'
Quickly scanning through the recorded video, he got to the previous night and started slowing down how fast he skimmed through, going in bursts until he spotted him. Dressed in all black, with a sword strapped to his back, was a person who matched Izuku Midoriya's build.
They had a body on their shoulders and seemed to be talking to the ghost of a samurai, the same one that had been with him during the entrance exam. A contemplative look appeared on Nezu's face as he saw the boy and the samurai part, with Izuku taking the body into the Ghost's domain.
A quick skim of the email Naomasa sent Shouta revealed that the one who was kidnapped, or at least, the one the traffickers claimed got kidnapped, was one Reza Yukai, a wanted criminal and villain known for injuring and impairing an ex-pro-hero's movements enough that some falling debris killed her.
Alongside some of his own… personal research into Izuku Midoriya, he had an excellent idea of what the boy might be attempting to do. Multiple clips of someone, who matched how Izuku was dressed tonight, covered his second monitor. Each showed him exorcising spirits around Japan, and Nezu couldn't help but grin.
Without anyone else's intervention, the spirit that inhabited the building Izuku had just entered, whom Nezu assumed was the ghost of one Ukabu Kashiwagi, would likely have manifested as a true, high-tier Evil Spirit, requiring Nezu to call some of his more… mystical contacts to clear it out.
But… this was an excellent opportunity to see what level Izuku was truly on when it came to the mystic arts. Nezu had only spotted him exorcising lower to medium-tier evil spirits, but the ability to even make physical contact with a spirit, a notoriously difficult technique, was something he did effortlessly, passively even.
Nezu would admit that the idea of recruiting him was a very favourable one, but he wouldn't rush through the process just based on the standard heroics entrance exam. The spiritual world was a different beast altogether and thus required a different benchmark.
As truly tragic as her story was, Ukabu Kashiwagi would provide an excellent test. "It's time to show me what you are capable of, young man…"
He couldn't help the shudder that shot down his spine as he crossed the threshold of Miss Kashiwagi's lair.
If he had thought that the atmosphere in her Lair had been heavy before, then right now… it was almost crushing him. He strode forward down the path and entered the doorway of the decrepit building.
"HAHAHA! Back already! My, what a good little helper you are! If you didn't have Spiritsbane practically drenching your entire outfit, I might have even hugged you for how happy I am!"
Izuku couldn't help the slight wince at the mention of the 'Spiritsbane' he had infused into his clothing, a not-so-subtle reminder from the ghost that she could sense the mixed concoction of anti-spiritual materials embedded into his outfit.
Still, he faked complete innocence, kneeling in front of the chair Miss Kashiwagi had become accustomed to 'sitting' in. She was clearly an arrogant woman having her own throne even in the afterlife, but it could also be that her hatred had corrupted her personality once she became a ghost, making her this arrogant.
Reza Yukai's unconscious body was placed down on the ground as gently as he could. He then stood back up again, stepping away from the body, and kneeling again. As he did, he felt the pressure he had been feeling on his soul since he made the deal with her loosen.
He had fulfilled his part of the arrangement.
"WONDERFUL! You've got him! And he's unconscious, so fragile and helpless!"
He kept his face as calm as he could, but he felt a little disappointed in himself. How had he ever even considered making a deal with this horrible spirit? Ah, right, desperation for information about the UA entrance exam, one of the most important tests he would ever have to take.
He subtly pinched himself in the leg, refocusing on reality. It was easier to get distracted when in a spirit's domain, their very essence and emotions permeating the whole area, putting mortal minds on the defensive.
He stayed silent as Miss Kashiwagi floated around Reza Yukai's unconscious form for a minute or two, yelling obscenities he would never repeat and curses that he wouldn't wish on his worst enemies at the man.
But, she hadn't manifested yet.
And so Izuku stayed kneeling, waiting for Miss Kashiwagi to address him. Which didn't take too long, her taunting seemingly boring her after a little while. "It's less fun if I can't touch him… Midoriya. You can kill him now. Then when he becomes a ghost, I'll be able to rip him apart with my bare hands."
Izuku took a deep breath, suddenly feeling the weight of the sword on his back even heavier than usual as he prepared to wield it. After calming his nerves, he rose to his feet and looked at Miss Kashiwagi dead on.
"No."
She had balked when he had looked at her, the show of disrespect a clear one, but as he spoke he felt her aura grow sharper around him, the very domain he was standing in turning aggressive to his presence.
"Excuse me?"
The sheer rage in her voice was palpable, but Izuku held his ground as the waves of negative energy threatened to throw him back, tucking a hand into his jacket, grabbing one of his charms and pushing his energy into it, a protective warmth surrounding him like a shield.
It sounded goofy, but sometimes having a charm full to the brim with the contained energy of his mother's love for him was one of the best defences he could ask for. Not that it would hold up to an actual attack, but it was great to combat a passive aura like this.
His resistance to her attempt to intimidate him just made her even angrier, her form warping even more than it had been, and Izuku could tell that she was on the cusp of becoming a proper evil spirit.
Actually, with how quickly she was changing, it was more correct to say that she had been straddling the line between a ghost and an evil spirit for a long time. A part of him felt guilty for speeding it along with his plan, but he steeled himself.
This was going to have happened anyway. At least he would be here to fight here at her weakest.
"You DARE say no to me?! A deal was struck! Kill him, or have your betrayal tear your soul to shreds!"
Izuku drew his sword, reaching into his jacket with his other hand, pulling out a small vial of purple oil and letting it drip down onto the blade, the sweet scent of the Wisteria oil filling his nostrils. "I don't think so. The deal was that I bring him here. You made no mention of what I would be doing after that. I am free to act as I want."
Miss Kashiwagi stuttered at that, and even though she didn't have a head, Izuku could feel the shocked anger blazing from her soul, so he didn't need to see her face to know he had just royally pissed her off.
"You… you little fucking brat! He's a criminal! A villain! He's just scum! Not worth saving, so why do you not put him down like the dog he is?!"
Izuku sighed, adopting a combat stance, his sword pointed at Miss Kashiwagi. "Because this man belongs wholly to the world of the living, and it will be the living who pass judgment on him. I am not an executioner for hire."
The flood of negative emotions that escaped Miss Kashiwagi as his words sunk in was torrential, but he kept his eyes on her as best he could, trusting the protection charm to work its magic.
It was during this flood that he felt the shift in the domain around him and in the spiritual core of Miss Kashiwagi herself. Darker, more malevolent, lacking the tinge of humanity that kept ghosts anchored to their previous lives…
Miss Kashiwagi had ascended to the rank of 'Evil Spirit'... and if his senses were correct, a very powerful one, for a newly formed evil spirit. In all honesty, he had fought stronger spirits before, but not alone like he was now.
This would take all the tricks he had in his arsenal, but he could do it. He knew he could, and so did Minamoto. So as Kashiwagi let out her first attack, her telekinesis picking up almost every object not nailed down in her domain…
Izuku pushed forward, the oil on his sword shimmering in the shifting light.
Ukabu Kashiwagi was truly powerful.
She felt powerful, for the first time in over a decade. Finally, finally, she had the power to get her revenge on the bastard that had caused her death. If only this BRAT would get out of the way!
Her telekinesis allowed her to move non-living objects, and the imprint of her Quirk had seemingly attached to her spiritual energy because it was easier than ever before to throw things at Midoriya.
Annoyingly, frustratingly, however, the brat always seemed to weave out of the way. And to make it worse, he kept throwing things around the room that smelt like rotten meat… she had forgotten what it was like to smell things.
"LEAVE THE BASTARD TO ME, THEN, IF YOU WON'T KILL HIM! DIE, AND WATCH AS I FINALLY GET MY REVENGE!"
A wave of her hand (was that her hand? It looked so… different) sent a barrage of debris hurtling towards Midoriya, and she thought that she hit him as a plume of smoke exploded out from where he was running, but was proven wrong when he jumped out of the smoke towards her, his sword arm wound back.
-SHING!-
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
As pain shot through her entire body, she screamed. It burned, it burned, it burned, it burned! What the fuck was on his sword?! "I'll kill you for that you ungrateful, disloyal little shit!"
As the arm that he had just chopped off of her hit the ground and dissolved, he darted away again before she was able to grab him with her other arm. "You seem to already be trying that, how is it going?"
As his words clicked, her vision went red, a scream of rage escaping her as she started wildly throwing objects at him as fast as she could, not giving him any chance to rest. Her energy felt endless, but he was only human. As long as she could wear him down, then this annoying little fly would be gone from her home.
Just a little longer…
Ok, she was angry, it was giving her a new level of power.
Despite how it seemed, getting her this angry was his plan. An evil spirit's power grows alongside their emotions, so with the power-high that she was riding right now due to inhuman levels of rage and hatred…
It also had the side effect of making her entirely focused on him, meaning that Izuku didn't have to use time and resources to protect Reza Yukai.
He slid under a burst of debris she sent at his head, slapping a charm on the ground underneath him that instantly halted his movement, and he rolled backwards, dodging the follow-up she sent towards where his legs would have been. As it crashed into the wall, he reached into his jacket, pulling out a packet of richly coloured brown powder.
Cacao powder. Mainly used to smother the emotions of spirits and ghosts alike. It wouldn't be enough to completely neuter a spirit, especially not one as powerful as Kashiwagi, but it would cause a significant, and more importantly sudden dip in power.
Vibrations shot through his arm as he batted away a couple of steel pipes with his sword, the metal not even bending to the impact as he scanned the room. It seemed that she was running out of debris on her side of the room, her constant barrage slowing down.
'This is my chance!'
Clenching his fist around the bag of Cacao powder, he felt a small click, followed by the sound of a fuse burning. Now on a timer, he darted forward, flipping over a table she threw at him and kicking off it towards her.
His arm wrenched back, before pelting the Cacao powder bag at her, the fuse of the fairly large firecracker he'd placed inside of it perfectly timed with it striking her in the chest, and Izuku was suddenly very glad for his goggles and mask as brown power exploded from the bag with a loud 'BANG!'
Immediately, he could feel the sharp sensation of her domain dull quite a bit, and he knew that the Cacao powder was suppressing her emotions, and thus limiting her power. Pushing forward, he put both hands on his sword.
"WHAT THE HELL IS THIS!?"
Her question echoed through the domain, but Izuku wasn't in a very educational mood. He dived into the cloud of brown powder that hung around the spirit, drawn in by her energy, and with both hands, swung his sword with all his might.
He felt a small amount of resistance before he heard a 'crack', and he sailed right on through her. He hit the ground hard, having fully committed to the last attack, and was forced to stab his sword into the ground to slow him so he didn't hit the wall back first and wind himself.
With a flash of sleight of hand, Izuku whipped a charm out of his jacket, throwing it towards the cloud of powder and activating it, sending out a small blast of wind in every direction, dispersing the Cacao powder.
His sword was still raised, and he was ready to continue fighting. However… it looked like he was done for the night.
As both halves of Miss Kashiwagi's distorted form lay on the ground, her spiritual core split right down the middle, she started dissolving from both ends. Izuku sighed as he lowered his sword, walking towards her.
"I am truly sorry, Miss Kashiwagi."
He knew that she couldn't hear him, but it felt good to apologise anyway. He hadn't wanted to exorcise her. If he had the chance, he would have tried his best to pull her away from the spiral of hatred she had been going down, but… she was already past the point of no return when he met her.
Instead of letting her slowly dissolve, something that he had been told was rather painful for an evil spirit, he slashed his sword over the remains of her spiritual core, shattering it completely.
She vanished instantly, the slightly glowing dust-like energy dissipating. He almost buckled at the knee as he felt her domain instantly start to shrink as well, and immediately sprinted for the exit, grabbing Rezu Yukai on his way out.
He made it out of the shrinking domain and dumped the still-unconscious man onto the floor, turning back and watching as the domain got smaller and smaller, before eventually blipping out of existence entirely.
"You are alive and well, that is excellent to see. Congratulations on your success. I can no longer sense any of Lady Kashiwagi's spiritual energy."
Even with the clear joy in Minamoto's tone, Izuku could only give him a sharp nod, not in as good a mood as the ghostly samurai seemed to be. "Let's just drop this guy off with the police. I want to go to bed 5 minutes ago."
A soft laugh escaped Minamoto as he placed a hand on Izuku's shoulder. "I know this was hard for you, Midoriya. But take solace in knowing you saved a great many lives today. No matter the results of this school test of yours, know that I see you as a true hero already."
Izuku felt his throat closing up as he held back a sob, but the hand on his shoulder moved to ruffle his hair. "Do not hold back your tears, young man, allow yourself to feel your emotions completely. A warrior who has no regret whatsoever about having to end another's existence is no better than an animal, and you are the furthest from an animal I have met in a long time."
Izuku fell to his knees outside of the building, Minamoto leaving his hand on his head, and cried softly. All the while, completely unaware of the camera across the street, the test he had just passed, and the interest he had garnered.
