Chapter 9: A Day Off
Half the day had already passed when Izuku woke up. His mother was slightly worried, mainly due to seeing him have a long sword slash on his chest, but he told her it was fine, saying it was just a very long day yesterday and his healing factor would do its job. Sighing and saying she feels like she's lost ten years off her life ever since Izuku started being a vigilante, she told him to relax today, which Izuku agreed to after a light lunch.
Now, he was on the living room couch, sewing up his costume from yesterday's fight.
"I need to make a few spare costumes." He told himself as he finished up the outfit. He looked it over at this, letting out a hum, "There we go."
And as he put the costume down, the television stopping showing commercials as a reporter appeared on the screen.
"Breaking News! UA was attacked! Villains attacked the school, trying to kill All Might!
"Kill All Might?!" Izuku yelped, his eyes going wide at that statement, "Wait...villains thought they could actually do that?!"
"A group of villains attacked the prestigious school, believing they could take on the Symbol of Peace, only for recent investigation to show that the hero instantly beat them. More news to come shortly."
"Wow..." Izuku muttered out as he got up and put his costume in his closet, "To think villains would be that ballsy. Then again, a lot of criminals I've been fighting have been gutsy like that."
And as he went back to the living room, the television was now showing a group of reporters, all going over different exploits of All Might and how the villains were so foolish to attack the school. Seeing this, Izuku slumped down in the couch after grabbing an extra cup of ramen out of the kitchen.
As he began to slurp the noodles, he stared at the screen, 'Guess the stuff I did yesterday didn't hit the news. Eh, that's okay. I mean, it is All Might after all. Still...I wonder if Kacchan got to see it. Probably did since he gets everything...he probably even got to fight those villains.'
Meanwhile...
Eraserhead didn't want to teach today. Granted, teaching was his job, but if he was totally honest, his mind was more set on what he would be doing later today. Thanks to the villain attack, which after the incident he went to Nezu and repeatedly asked him to get rid of All Might, saying it was all his fault that his students were put in danger and the press will start looking at them when they really shouldn't, and now the staff was gonna meet later to talk about the attack. And Nezu didn't get rid of All Might despite how much he complained.
Sighing at this, he dragged his sleeping bag as he went up to class 1-A's front door, quickly opening it with a single swing. There a barrage of noise in the room, over half the class talking about the incident yesterday, mostly about how All Might beat that monster villain.
But silence soon came when they saw their teacher open the door. He glared at them as he drudged up to the podium, "Five seconds. Its an improvement, but I expect you to be quicker next time." Aizawa grumbled as he pulled out a cup of coffee from the sleeping bag, which had somehow not stained or spilled inside the thing.
He let out a long sigh as he saw the expectant faces his students were wearing, "Alright...before you all ask, yes, what happened yesterday did happen. There was a villain attack because All Might is now teaching here." As he said that hero's name, the students could feel the anger drip out of his voice, "As such, the rest of the school and the press now know about the attack, which means eyes are going to be on you, even if you didn't participate in the attack."
Katsuki shined a huge grin at this as Aizawa continued, "However, I want you to all to forget about it, because there's a lot more important stuff happening soon."
"Like what Aizawa-sensei?" the student known as Ochako Uraraka asked.
"The UA Sports Festival is in two weeks."
The class immediately went into an uproar, Aizawa knowing he had lost all their attention at this. And after a minute or so of talking, he got it back as he said, "Now listen up, the festival is important, as there will tons of eyes on you all. That also means you can't slack off at all. I expect you all to do well, or you're expelled. Period."
Almost all of the students flinched at this, remembering the first day where the student Mineta Minoru was expelled after failing the quirk test.
"Good. You're all learning. Now, let's begin the day."
Izuku was now at his computer, finishing up some extra homework before skimming through a few online news outlets. Back when he first created his special hero app for his phone, he designed it around a news collecting program he had created on his computer. Despite this, he found it to be inefficient, as the news it mainly found were either extremely biased or redacted like crazy.
As such, information was scarce despite being in the information age. It just goes to show you how easily stuff can be covered up if someone wants it to stay hidden. Izuku had no doubt in his mind that half the info that never got out was part of the hero commission, but he knew that was part of a hero's job, even if he wasn't one.
Despite this, he did find that a few did report the adventure he had yesterday. It was mainly through them trying to interview Ingenium, though Izuku didn't mind. He had gotten a sweet autograph out of it.
However, he was also looking over the news outlets for something else. He still had nothing on those masked men. Two encounters and he found zilch on them. There was no name for the gang, no purpose except robbing that bank, and they all had the same quirks and spoke a different language.
Izuku leaned back in his chair at this, pulling out another notebook. This one was new, one that he made purely for investigations, which he had thought up after his encounter with Tombstone's gang. He tapped the pages with his pencil as his mind went over everything.
'So...I still don't have much. These masked guys come out of nowhere, rob a bank and cause a car chase...at least, in my tussles with them. There's nothing online, so they have to be new...' He glanced back up to the computer, which was now showing an interview with Ingenium. 'No name to the gang either. They all just have the same quirk, speak a different language...and they're really gutsy. I mean, they do all their stuff in the day. At least, of what I've seen.'
He put the notebook down at this, letting out a sigh as he crossed his arms. "Hmm...I don't know much about detective work. Guess its another thing I'll have to learn since I failed to get into UA. Maybe I should get a small forensic kit for my costume. That, and I could bring my old scanner I made..."
He looked up at the computer again, now seeing another news report on the UA attack. 'Hmmm...wonder who those villains were? I mean, they're even more ballsy than those masked guys if they want to take on All Might.' He leaned back in his chair, putting his hands behind his head, 'I better not think about it. Might be best to just take on one or two cases at a time.'
Naomasa was walking through the halls of UA, his eyes scanning at the files in his hand. He couldn't help but think that this was just the beginning. He then looked up and saw a single door, sighing as he grabbed the handle and opened it. Glancing inside, he saw a conference room filled with every hero UA had. Even All Might was there, in his skeleton form as a drip of blood went down his chin before wiping it.
"Ah, detective! Welcome!" exclaimed the principal of UA, Nezu. The little stoat creature was waving to him as the detective slowly walked into the room.
"Hello everyone." Naomasa responded as he put down the folders he was carrying, "I hope you all know why this meeting was called."
"About the attack at the USJ." Vlad King chimed in while crossing his arms.
Naomasa nodded back, "Yes. Now, as you all know, an organization of villains calling themselves 'The League of Villains' attacked UA. We've looked into this organization and it seems to be that this is a brand new villain group. We've found no information on either of the main villains over this, that being Tomura Shigaraki and Kurogiri. Tomura Shigaraki seems to be the leader, and based on what Eraserhead said during his encounter with him, he has the power of disintegration, which we now believe is what took out the pillar at UA."
"Which allowed the press to get in." Aizawa grumbled, "What else do we have on him?"
"Not much. We've looked deep into the databases and quirk registry, only to find nothing. We have no background on him, no family...nothing. There is no record of him whatsoever. We do now have a profile set up for him. According to what we've interviewed between you all and the villains he recruited, Shigaraki seems to have a very childish personality. Its like he's a man-child that has been given too much power."
"Agreed. He acted like it was some kind of performance when I fought him." Aizawa added, "And do we have anything on Kurogiri?"
Naomasa shook his head, "No records there either. All we have is that he has a warp quirk, probably the most powerful one we've ever seen."
"That's not good." Snipe chimed in.
"And what about that weapon they attacked me with. What was that?" All Might added, Naomasa taking out a paper out of folder in response.
"Ah yes, the Nomu." Naomasa replied as he tapped the paper with his hand. "I just got a report from the crime lab over the monster. We tried to interrogate it, but got nothing. It doesn't seem to respond to anything, so the lab ran a DNA analysis instead. Turns out, it was originally human, just a small time criminal."
"That thing was originally human?" Thirteen asked, "How?"
"We don't fully know. All we know is that according to the analysis, it has multiple quirks and seems to be designed to be braindead. We suspect this was done so it could follow orders more easily."
"Wait...multiple quirks? How is that possible?" Midnight chimed in, "Isn't the most you can have is two?"
"Under normal circumstances, yes. However, that's not the case here." Naomasa responded, "We believe this could be connected to All For One."
The room almost went silent at that, most going wide-eyed as Present Mic asked, "All For One? Isn't that a myth?"
"He's real." All Might spoke up in a low, draining tone, "He's very very real." He slowly turned to Naomasa, "Is there any more evidence that its him?"
"No. However, when it comes to All For One, you're not going to find much more evidence than something like this."
"True." Nezu hummed as he glanced over the files, "According to these results, this is extreme experimentation. This Nomu is essentially no longer human. That being said, if this is an experiment and this is its first appearance, that must mean this is brand new." He looked back up at the detective, "Do we have anything else like this, this...multiple quirks injected into one being? Any case similar?"
Naomasa bit his lip at this, "Honestly, I would say no...except that a recent new case does have certain...similar circumstances."
"Oh? What might that be?" Nezu chirped.
Naomasa closed his eyes at this, taking a deep breath, "Before I start, I want to state that this is purely my theory. I have brought it up with the lab, and they denied it due to how the Nomu seems to be made and the lack of evidence. The Nomu seems to be designed to be a puppet, and everything about it is made to be just that. However, the Nomu is like nothing we've ever seen before."
"And the case you're following isn't remotely like it though, is it?"
Naomasa nodded back, "Correct. The only things that connect is the fact that the individual has multiple quirks, the timing, that is, the fact that this person just appeared right before the Nomu...and how perfect both are in terms of their quirks. They both seemed to be exactly designed for their quirks. Now, the number of quirks is actually unknown for this individual, but its been debated that they have between three or four quirks. Regularly, that should be impossible, just like the Nomu, which is why I believe this could be connected." Naomasa then pulled out another paper, spinning it around to show an image of a certain costumed individual. "This is Spider-Man, a new vigilante on the scene."
"A vigilante? That's not a villain, detective." Vlad instantly chimed in.
"I know. That's why it could possibly be not connected." Naomasa replied, "However, the case is extremely bizarre. For one, all the footage and evidence we have of him seem to suggest this vigilante just received his quirks."
Looks of confusion filled most of the room, Midnight asking, "Just received them?"
Naomasa nodded back, "Yes. Here, watch." He gestured to a laptop that had been setup, soon showing the footage of Spider-Man at both bank fights, along with him fighting Vulture.
"As you can see, he has no experience, and he acts as if he just received his powers."
"He also acts like he knows what quirks he has, but is surprised when it works." Eraserhead commented as he saw Spider-Man venom punch the bulky masked thug in the bank before celebrating on the quirk working.
"And based on the interviews with others who have encountered him, they believe he's around UA entering age." Naomasa let out a long sigh at this, "In fact, his first appearance, which was later confirmed by Kamui Woods, seemed to be the vigilante testing out his quirk and-"
"It happened a little bit after the UA entrance exams, didn't it?" Nezu interrupted, the room all turning to him as Naomasa nodded again, "I figured as much. Vigilantes do sometimes appear after failing our exams."
Several glanced back at the footage, Snipe chiming in, "Wait...you're saying we rejected him? With that kind of power?"
"Its possible." Nezu shrugged, "If he truly had no experience using his quirk, our test would be hard for him. Is this why you asked for the files on who failed our exams, detective?"
"Yes." Naomasa nodded, "Unfortunately, it didn't give me anything."
"I see. I figured that was where you were going with this. I won't deny there's a problem with the amount of students we accept to take the exams makes a giant suspect pool, and if he did in fact just receive his quirks, the profile he submitted to UA will probably be misleading. Anyways, I understand why you think this is connected, detective. This is a bizarre case, as it shouldn't be possible. Do you believe perhaps Spider-Man is an escaped experiment from the one who made the Nomu?"
"That's definitely a possibility. As you all probably know, people who are born with two quirks are extremely rare, and most that are born with them are usually very unstable. However, both the Nomu and Spider-Man seem to have perfect combination quirks. For Spider-Man, he has perfect assassination abilities. The powers of a spider allow him to crawl up walls with ease, along with the invisibility and electricity quirks, give him very distinct abilities that any hitman or killer would want. His webbing is also unique, as what samples we've tried to collect dissolve into nothing in what appears to be under three hours, as if by design as well."
"And the Nomu is the same, though its designed for something completely different." Eraserhead added as he stared at the paper before him. "Super Regeneration with Shock Absorption, along with body enhancements, possibly a strengthening quirk...definitely what you would want for a tireless super-powered weapon of destruction. Perfect for distractions and chaos."
"Agreed." Nezu continued as he looked over the file Naomasa had made on Spider-Man. "However, this Spider-Man could be recruited as a potential student. We do not have a full heroics class this year after all. The interviews make it sound like he's very young, is that correct?"
"Yes. Though that is a legal hassle now. You know what the commission thinks about vigilantes."
Eraserhead rolled his eyes at this, "That's because they prefer flashy heroic quirks and not quirks that could actually make a difference. This Spider-Man...he's perfect for underground hero work, something the commission barely approves." He let out a long sigh, "Its irrational, but there's no way they would accept him now."
"Now now, no need to be that negative Aizawa." Nezu replied before rubbing his chin with a grin, "Regardless of all we've discussed, there's a lot happening here. We should begin creating an investigation over the League of Villains and we'll keep the Spider-Man case separate for now until new evidence comes to light."
"Agreed." responded everyone but All Might.
As for the Symbol of Peace, he stared at two different papers. One showing the Nomu, the other Spider-Man. 'All For One...so you're alive. What are you up to now?' He stared at a photo of Spider-Man, remembering back to his encounter with Shigaraki, 'This Shigaraki boy...you've obviously corrupted him. Did you try to do the same to this Spider-Man?'
Izuku spun the pencil in his hand, still surprised at his new enhanced reflexes. He always wanted to be able to do small finger tricks like in the movies, but now being able too...it was still strange. He then stared down at his notebook, which was on the pages over fighting styles.
However, there weren't anything on fighting styles. Instead, it just showed super moves. In the past few hours, he found everything he looked up on martial arts to be worthless. Nothing corresponded with using his webbing, something he knew he needed to put in his fighting style.
As such, he concluded he would have to make his own, and started to put in super moves instead. He figured out a few obvious ones with his Venom Power, and started to try figure out stuff with webbing. This was followed by several stealth moves, along with thinking some acrobatics could be put in, though Izuku concluded he had no idea how to do that.
And as he finished his notes, he went over to his webbing cartridges, seeing a big supply of them now. The sight made him smile, glad that his inventing talent that he hated so much now become so useful with his new quirk. Despite this, he felt unfulfilled, mainly because he promised his mom to not go out as Spider-Man today.
'Oh...I want to go out as Spider-Man! I can't stand being cooped up in here!' He thought as he began to pace in his room. 'I wanna try this stuff! I wanna go out there!'
He then slumped down in his desk chair, letting out a long sigh. "I can't wait for tomorrow."
Meanwhile again...
All For One stared at the screens before him despite not having working eyes. His many sensory quirks allowed him to semi-watch the footage before him, this time showing several heroes along with a certain new vigilante.
"Spider-Man...interesting. You have multiple quirks, yet you don't seem to be a mindless monster like my Nomu. Very interesting." He chuckled before putting his hand to his chin, "Why are you a vigilante? Did this so-called world of heroes reject you?"
"Master, its time for another treatment." said a voice coming from a certain small bald man now walking into the room.
"I see. Before you do it doctor, tell me something." All For One pointed to the screen with Spider-Man, showing him fight in the bank, "Is that one of yours? Perhaps an escapee?"
The doctor shook his head, "No master. I have nothing like that in my experiments."
"It has to be an experiment, doctor. No one has that many quirks except for me. Think its one of your colleagues? Perhaps Connors?"
The doctor shook his head, "Bah, it couldn't possibly be him. He's too much of a goody-two-shoes. No, if he's an experiment, I can only think of two to three other scientists it could be...though I haven't heard much from them lately."
"I see..."
"Do you wish for me to capture him for you, master? I can send Kurogiri and-"
"No." All For One interrupted, "Leave him be."
"Oh? May I ask why, master?"
"Simple." All For One replied as he shined a huge smile, "Vigilantes stir up the underworld. They act outside the law, meaning they'll go after anyone, which helps keep the underworld disorganized. When I'm ready to take over again, its much easier to get all the villains to follow me in the chaos. Besides, that's the beauty of this world now, thanks to the so-called heroes."
"What do you mean?"
"This world is now obsessed with heroic quirks, meaning that those who don't fit the norm will become desperate or become villains. This allows hundreds of villains to be born for every one hero." He put his hands together as his smile grew even more. "Its the perfect system for me. Simple as that."
"I see. And if this Spider-Man interferes?"
"If he does, we'll just have another interesting quirk or two to put into our arsenal."