- In the Shie Hassaikai Base -
10:30 AM
"Man, what's taking him so long in there?" Irinaka asked in annoyance as he, Kurono, and their boss Chisaki, known to most as Overhaul, sat on chairs, waiting outside a room where Joker was making the alteration of the Quirk Destroying Drug.
"Patience, Irinaka," Overhaul told him firmly from where he sat next to Kurono and Irinaka, the latter sitting on the former's shoulder. His hands clasped together as he studied the door in front of them, "I'm certain it's a tedious task to try to contain Eri's adrenalized blood and replicate it. Besides, some of our men are watching over Joker to make sure he's keeping his end of the bargain."
"Plus, there's that gas form of the drug he's talking about," muttered Kurono a little skeptically.
"Indeed," Overhaul said, eyes narrowed at the door where Joker was making the substance, "An impressive feat if he can do that."
"Still, all this waiting is makin' me a little anxious," Irinaka grumbled, his little arms crossed.
"We'll let Joker take as long as he needs to make this version of our Quirk Destroying Drug. If we can get more samples of Eri's blood and alter it instead of creating the formula the old way, production would be much faster...and our goal will be set," Overhaul explained.
"Hmph...as long as he writes down the notes," Irinaka said bitterly.
"I will say that if Joker can somewhat make unlimited resources by just containing and replicating Eri's suped-up blood, then that would give Eri time to relax from all the...experiments," Kurono mentioned.
"...Hm...yes...she should consider herself lucky..." Overhaul said darkly.
After a few seconds of waiting, the door to the lab finally opened.
Overhaul and his two men held their breaths when Joker came out, along with two other of Overhaul's men, a tall-looking male, while the other was muscular and stout male, each of them wearing their outfits and plague masks.
Joker was carrying a jar of some kind, the contents inside being a blood red substance with some black specks in it. It also looked to be...vibrating…
A devious smile plastered itself across Joker's face as he lifted the jar to showcase it.
"Aaaand it's done!" Joker announced, wiggling the jar in his hand.
Overhaul and Kurono got up from their seats, while Irinaka stayed in his spot on Kurono's shoulder and walked over to Joker.
"Here you go, Overhaul!" Joker gave him the jar full of Eri's more charged-up blood to him, "Just give it a little shake, and it will still vibrate all that power for at least thirty minutes."
Once Overhaul grabbed the jar, he could still feel it rapidly vibrating. "...This is...quite amazing, I must admit," he looked at Joker, "Does it still work as it's supposed to?"
"Weeellll, you could try it on some poor sap. Not me, of course, considering I don't have a quirk! Hoo-hoo!" Joker morbidly jested, "But in all seriousness, yes, it still works. Probably a lot faster this time too!"
"Hm...did you write down the notes?" Overhaul asked.
"Ooooh," Joker faked disappointment as he slammed a fist in his hand, "Darn, I knew I forgot something."
"You didn't write those notes down!?" Irinaka exclaimed angrily, his large hand coming out of the mini-pod and grabbing Joker by the collar.
"Irinaka. Stand. Down," Overhaul scolded him.
Irinaka growled at the Joker, while Joker...just gave out a sly smile.
"Oh, come on, take a joke, will ya? Besides, your lackeys back there would have said something if it were true," Joker smirked as he reached inside his coat pocket and produced a piece of paper containing the formula's notes, "Here you go!"
Irinaka let go of Joker's collar and retracted his hand back into his pod suit. Crossing his little arms, he grumbled, embarrassed by his outburst.
"You need to control your anger, Irinaka," Kurono told him.
"Indeed," Overhaul said darkly, taking the notes from Joker. "Like he said, those men behind him would've said something."
"...I'm sorry, Boss," Irinaka mumbled, thoroughly chastised.
Straightening his suit, Joker chuckled, "You should also be saying sorry to me. I'm working for you all for free! You don't have to pay me a thing!"
Irinaka growled at Joker in distaste.
"Apologize to him, Irinaka," Overhaul told him.
"What!?" Irinaka exclaimed as he turned to his boss.
"Now," Overhaul said, his voice threatening.
"..." Irinaka faced Joker and muttered, "Sorry...Joker..."
Joker grinned, his smile turning deranged and twisted, "Oh, don't worry, you're forgiven."
"...Feh..." Irinaka sulked.
"Either way, you certainly impressed me with this, Joker. You have the skills of an advanced chemist. What was your past profession, if I may ask?" Overhaul asked Joker.
"Oh, I was many things. One day I could be a comedian, and the next I could be a mobster, I could even have been a nuclear physicist one time! Any of those, really! I loved to learn when I was little. Loooved to know how some things work and see what makes some people...tick. Heroes, specifically, I should add."
"Hm...I see you're trying to keep your past vague. I will respect that. I will say, though, that you are doing a service to our cause. I'm also quite curious about this gas form of the drug that you mentioned," Overhaul said.
"Oh, that one will take time, surely. It might actually take a day or so to develop that bad boy," Joker explained.
Overhaul nodded, "Then, by all means, take your time."
Joker's twisted smile still remained, "Why, thank you! So, how will you test it out, if I may ask?"
"Hmm...good question. We can't test it out in broad daylight, so we need to wait until night falls to use this on someone inconspicuous. Either small-time crooks or one of our clients that buys our Trigger," Overhaul informed.
"Oooh, would it be okay if I see it in action once you find test subjects?" Joker grinned excitedly, "I love to see something that I made come to fruition!"
Overhaul gazed at him for a second, shrugged, and said, "If you must, then, by all means, you can."
"Splendid! Hoo-hoo!" Joker cackled, "If anything I can get Hacker to find a couple of suckers tonight for us to test your formula out!"
"Ah, yes. One of your henchmen. You call him Hacker. He seems to be a very resourceful lackey," Overhaul mentioned.
"Oh very much so. But I can't give him all the credit, my other lackeys certainly get the job done as well," Joker informed, "Which, by the way, speaking of one of my henchmen and his Quirks, I want to speak to you for a moment in private, Overhaul. It's something that I want to discuss with you about UA that I think you might want to know."
Kurono and Irinaka tensed for a moment, until Overhaul instructed them, "Kurono, Irinaka, leave us."
Both subordinates looked at each other, unsure of what this meeting would entail, but respected their boss's wishes as they walked away from them.
However, the distaste from Irinaka was still present as they were out of earshot of Overhaul and Joker.
"I don't like that guy," Irinaka murmured to Kurono.
"I can tell. But if it makes you feel any better, I'm kind of suspicious of him too," Kurono quietly admitted.
"Tch, yeah, like, how can he be in good graces with the boss already?" Irinaka wondered.
"Either way, he is a valuable asset to the cause. And I'm also certain Overhaul will deal with him just fine if he is somehow deceitful."
"Hrmm..."
"What is it?" Overhaul asked the clown.
"Well, thanks to one of Hacker's tiny little inventions, he was able to insert a mind-altering device inside of a fly, letting him control the disgusting little creature. Why am I mentioning this, you may ask? Well, Hacker just happened to control this particular insect to be a literal fly on the wall early this morning, even going as far as being the fly's pair of eyes as he hid the fly in an air vent. Once he got the info on what they were talking about, he texted me back while I was working on the formula," Joker explained, his smile turning giddy.
"...Really? This Hacker made a device inside an insect to infiltrate UA?" Overhaul asked skeptically.
"Oh yes indeed!" Joker nodded excitedly.
"...I must admit, that sounds...hard to believe. UA is supposed to be one of the most guarded places in Japan. How would a simple remote-controlled fly on the wall get past that much security?" Overhaul asked him in disbelief.
"Weeeell, that wasn't the first attempt. I mean, how did you think we got through the Yaoyorozu Estate so simply without a hitch? Sure, there was some sort of struggle, but we got the cash nonetheless. But anyway, Hacker also hacked into the files of Class 1-A, disguising himself as a malware virus, when in actuality, it was just Hacker's consciousness going through! Course, the antivirus came and zapped him away, but one scan was all he needed!"
"...Interesting," Overhaul murmured, looking intrigued, "Still, I would find that a lot risky to even infiltrate UA by those means. From what I heard, the head there at UA is highly intelligent. Sooner or later, he'll find out that someone has breached their security."
"Oh, that I don't doubt. If my calculations are correct, he'll probably put the pieces together later on today. But just so you know, Hacker put a self-destruction option on the fly so there won't be any evidence, just in case he was found out. Don't worry, the explosion is nothing extravagant, just a quiet little pop. And he'll make sure it's a good distance away from anyone out of earshot," Joker assured.
"...You're not pulling my leg, are you?" Overhaul asked, momentarily losing composure.
"Haha!" Joker cackled, "I wish I was! But he really can do these things! I mean, I'm not complaining, but if I were him, I would get a new hobby! Hoo-hoo!"
Overhaul just stared at him for a second, until he said, "Okay then...what have you learned from the UA staff?"
"Oh, basically, from what Hacker told me, the head of UA is going for an initiative to find me and my gang. No doubt getting all the kids in Class 1-A involved with other Heroes and trying to find little ol' me!" Joker said as he pointed at himself with a wicked grin on his face.
"...Hm. So, you're probably suggesting you need to lay low, as you said before."
"Well, yes, but!" Joker said as he raised a finger to emphasize the word, "...There's something else that's interesting...something that involves...All Might," he finished with a sinister smile.
Overhaul's eyes lit up slightly, "...Go on."
"Hm-hm-hmm..." Joker chuckled, "Weeeellll, Hacker also told me some intriguing info about All Might's current state."
"And that would be?"
"I mean, it was kind of vague, but luckily, Hacker visually recorded everything he saw and stored the recording in one of his compartments! Haha! He really is such a good lackey! Having a guy with a cyborg, slash, android, slash, robot Quirk really does come in handy! He's probably my favorite henchman out of all of them! Just don't tell Hare I said that, kay?" Joker said with a whimsical smile, "But...from what I heard from Hacker, it seemed All Might looked a little...shriveled? I didn't know what he meant by that, since All Might is a fucking powerhouse, but it sounds pretty juicy, doesn't it?" he told him as he rubbed his hands together.
"...Hmm...yes...it is," Overhaul narrowed his eyes in interest, "What else did you happen to know?"
"Well, they basically figured out that I must be a Quirkless loser, of course. The head of the school pieced it together a lot sooner, and it seemed he had suspicions about me. I mean, that was all that has been really discussed, honestly," Joker informed, his smile broadening into something wicked, "Still, if you want to see what Hacker saw, as much as I do, then we can get some popcorn and watch it on the big screen?"
"Hmm...I would like to see what Hacker found out about All Might," said Overhaul.
"Oh, so do I, as well," Joker grinned maniacally.
- UA Teacher's Lounge -
10:00 AM
Toshinori Yagi sipped his coffee as he sat in the teacher's lounge.
He got the text from Nedzu about the 'initiative' for Class 1-A and letting them do Hero-Work Studies a little sooner tomorrow. He was also informed about the Big Three visiting the class today...
Hmm...Sir Nighteye's pupil is in that group…
...He wondered if he'll meet up with his old sidekick again...
Chances are, he's still not talking to me…
He hated to break it to Mirai like that before the semester even began, but he had already chosen who would be his predecessor.
...I just hope that Young Togata will go easy on Young Midoriya...
Sighing in uncertainty, Toshinori wilted under the weight of the building pressure on his shoulders.
"...It's gonna be a rough day from here and tomorrow," he muttered.
"What's going to be rough, All Might?" said the voice of...
"Oh! Principal Nedzu," Toshinori turned his head to see the rodent principal walk into the teacher lounge with a cup of herbal tea, "Uh, hello again! What brings you here to the teacher's lounge?"
Nedzu chuckled, "I actually want to talk to you about something when you have the time. You aren't too busy right now, are you? This is rather important, after all." Toshinori only had time to nod before Nedzu continued on. "Perfect! But first, you were mumbling something about it 'going to be rough'. What do you mean by that?"
"Oh, uh, well, you know...about the, um, the students of Class 1-A meeting the Big Three of UA today, as well as going to Hero-Work Studies tomorrow," Toshinori explained in halting syllables.
"Ah, so you did get my text. Yes, it will be 'rough', but such tasks are necessary to train the future generation of heroes. Class 1-A will try to handle their own against the Big Three, and I really hope they persevere," said Nedzu as he sat on the other couch across from Toshinori.
"Um…yes," Toshinori nodded, "I was also thinking about how the students who survived that home raid yesterday in the Yaoyorozu Estate will hold up against them."
"Oh, actually, while we are on the subject of Class 1-A, I do want to know how Midoriya is doing," asked Nedzu.
"Oh, well, he's doing...quite alright, I would think..." Toshinori replied, voice hushed as he looked around the area to see if there was anyone nearby to hear or see them.
"You don't have to worry, All Might. I locked the door and the walls are soundproof, as you already know, so no one can hear us," Nedzu assured.
Blinking at that, Toshi looked at the principal rodent a little worriedly, "Um...okay..." he rubbed the back of his head, "Well, Midoriya really has been doing fine after the whole ordeal. I would say he's recovering pretty well after the attack."
"That's good to know. He has quite the heroic spirit, doesn't he?" Nedzu asked Toshi.
"...You've seen the part where I said that on TV, didn't you?" Toshi said dryly.
"Oh, of course. Though that wasn't very wise per se, All Might. He could be a huge target for Villains now, very dangerous Villains, I might add, such as...you-know-who," Nedzu sipped his tea.
Toshinori sighed, "...It just slipped out, okay?"
"Still not a very good reason, All Might."
"I know, I know! I just…ugh...well, if you-know-who really is back, then he would've tried something already at this point."
"...All Might, it's only been yesterday, he has time to plan. He's a very patient individual."
"OKAY! I screwed up-*heerk!* " All Might exclaimed, letting blood squirt from his mouth. Nedzu remained unfazed, taking a slow sip of tea. "...Ugh...I already have Aizawa on my tail, I don't need someone else hounding me too...no offense, sir."
"None taken. We just have to take major precautions for the students of Class 1-A. Despite all the hardships they've faced this year, what with the villains who attacked the USJ and being thrust into the spotlight and subsequent internships, they've stayed positive and strong-minded. That doesn't mean we're out of the woods yet though," Nedzu paused in his speech to take a sip of his tea, "It's really in all of our best interests to watch over our students in UA, not only in the Hero Courses but for our other courses as well. I am glad the surviving students are quite alright, but this event could harm their self-esteem, as well as put scrutiny on our school for not preparing our students for such tasks. Hence, why I call upon this initiative."
"Of course, but..." Toshi lowered his head to think, I just don't want those kids, as well as Young Midoriya, to face such kinds of evil so early on in life... "...I just hope they all won't be thrown for a loop from all of this."
"Desperate times call for desperate measures, All Might," Nedzu told him, "In fact, I think it is now time for Class 1-A as well as the other classes to be closer to the school now more than ever."
"Huh? What do you mean?" Toshi asked curiously, lifting his head up at the principal.
"This was really a last-minute decision, but simply put, I feel like we might need some...residential housing on our campus."
"Residential...housing?" Toshi questioned, a little baffled.
Nedzu sipped his tea once more, "I meant getting us some dorm rooms, All Might."
"Oh! ...Wait, can we do that?"
"If we can get the building contract to pass, which it will, tomorrow we will let Cementoss make some new dormitories for Class 1-A as well as for the other classes. It is a very last-minute thing, mind you, and as of right now, I let Cementoss go over to the town hall to let it be approved."
"...Wow. Um, you're taking some extra measures here, sir."
"As I said, desperate times call for desperate measures," Nedzu reiterated. "Villain attacks are increasing in frequency towards our students, and having some of them be in the line of danger like that last night, just won't do."
"Well...I know we need to teach the kids a lot more about Heroics as well as have some self-defense classes, but...what about their parents? How will they handle their kids staying at UA for a while?" Toshinori asked Nedzu.
"Do not worry, All Might, I will give out a statement at the school towards the end of the day, and give the students' acceptance slips to give to their parents for them to sign. Once their parents accept the terms, we will move the students' things within the week once everything is sorted out."
"...Well...okay..." Toshi sat there as he thought of something else, "Actually, while we're on the topic of those Villains, do you really think they might have worked alone? Or could they be linked to him?''
All For One.
Knowing what he meant, Nedzu hummed in thought, "...That attack on the Yaoyorozu Estate was rather blatant and random. But there was also the bank robbery, which seemed to be just another random crime as well..." the rodent principal looked up at Toshi, "I really do have the utmost confidence that this Joker didn't want the money to begin with."
"What makes you say that?"
"Well, for one, if he really wanted money, he would've gone to the Yaoyorozu Estate first. And he had capable help with him, so he and his team would've been able to rob the Estate and steal a good portion of the Yaoyorozu fortune quite easily, I'm afraid to say. Which leads to the bank robbery yesterday afternoon. He didn't need any help whatsoever to pull that one off, which I honestly don't think the other robbers that were there with him were actually even working for him. It seemed that bank robbery was just part of a ploy to distract people from the Yaoyorozu Estate robbery since the brutality of that first crime was an instant headliner," Nedzu sipped the last remnants of his tea, "So in other words, this Joker, I think, seemed to be acting alone, with the exception of his crew."
"So...All For One isn't involved?" Toshi asked to make absolutely sure.
"I don't think so. These crimes committed by Joker just seemed to be upon average Villain attacks."
"Okay...but, if you said he doesn't want the money, then why would he do it? You said that people like Joker don't really have a reason to do what they do, but there has to be some reason."
"That I did say that...and that usually stems down to just upbringing. We don't know how he became who he is...but I might have an idea on how he was brought up if him being...well..."
"..." Toshi lowered his head once more, a frown on his face. "...Quirkless..."
"...I don't know for certain, All Might. But I feel like that piece of information could factor into Joker's motivation."
"..." Toshi scowled at a thought, "...Nedzu, sir?"
"Hm?" Nedzu looked at Toshi a little curiously.
"...Would you think that...if I didn't meet Nana, I would turn out to be like that?" Toshi asked seriously.
"...That, I think you would be able to know yourself, All Might," Nedzu answered simply, "But as for your previous question, I would think all these crimes Joker has committed would be somewhat of him trying to make a name for himself for whatever reason..."
...Toshinori looked up at the principal, "...Well, I'll tell you this...I'm very thankful for what I had back then."
Nedzu nodded, "That you should."
They sat there in silence...
...Until Nedzu spoke up again by saying, "Well, since we know what the head of this Villain group's name is, as well as him being Quirkless, what kind of Quirks did these lackeys of Joker obtain when you gathered information from Midoriya, the children, and Detective Tsukauchi?"
"Oh, well...I mean, I heard there were ten Quirked individuals. Four of them seemed to be the brawn type, as I think Young Todoroki was pounded by a Crystal Quirk guy, while Young Kaminari was held down by a big guy with a Rubber Quirk, and Young Iida was punched in by a guy with a Kaiju Monster Quirk. The bigger guy from what the kids said and seen had charged in and busted the doors down, which he looked like an Old West Locomotive Train. That must be his Quirk. A man with a Razor Quirk held down Young Uraraka, and both Young Asui, Ashido, and Jirou faced off a man with a Whip Quirk that lets him extract his whips to hold people in place, and a woman who was wielding baseball bats. I think hers was something of a Blunt Object Projection Quirk, but I'm not too sure. There was one that was somewhat of a Hacker, but from the kids' description, he looked like a Cyborg of some kind. The last two that Young Yaoyorozu and Young Midoriya encountered were a guy with a Chameleon Quirk, a man with a Heat Vision Quirk that makes anyone's body temperature rise, and lets them spontaneously combust into flames..."
Nedzu nodded, absorbing the information. "Ah, yes. In that case, I'll see what I can gather on these individuals by going through the data banks in the National Quirk Registry here."
"Oh, uh...you're gonna go over to the Quirk Registry headquarters? Today?" Toshinori blinked.
"Oh, heavens, no. I'm going to hack into it!" Nedzu told him like it was all normal.
"...Oh...uh, wait a minute, isn't that...um, illegal?"
"It's not illegal if it's an emergency to our school," Nedzu assured.
"...Oh, um...a-alright..." Toshinori blinked, not knowing what to say about that.
Nedzu hummed with a nod, "Well, All Might, I must be going. Oh, and think of Midoriya moving into campus as a very good thing. That way, you could try and train him, while keeping an eye out for him."
"Hm...yeah..." Toshinori gave a small smile. "Thanks, sir."
"Oh, no problem! Always love having talks with Heroes like you and such!" Nedzu assured him as he waved his paw at Toshi, "Just let your predecessor keep improving. This was just a setback for not only him but for the other students as well. And I can see from the news last night that you really did pick a winner there, Toshi."
Toshinori grinned, "Thank you, sir. That means a lot."
"Ho-ho! Well, I have to go now! Keep up the good work, All Might!" Nedzu hopped off the couch and walked out of the teacher's lounge.
Toshi sat there for a moment...until he had another dark thought.
He frowned...
...I really wonder...would...Young Midoriya...go down the path of Villainry if I haven't met him, and gave him One For All?
...It was a scary thought...
- UA - Class 1-A -
10:30 AM
"Hey there! My name is Togata Mirio! Nice to meet you all!" said the same older teenage male that Midoriya and the gang met earlier that day.
"Hiya! The name's Hado Nejire!" said the bubbly older teenage woman, waving at them.
"...A-Amakiji T-T-Tamaki," the shy teenage male stuttered and mumbled out to them, looking away from their gazes.
The kids in the class all looked at them in bewilderment.
"Hey...it's those guys again," Kaminari whispered over to Jirou's desk next to his.
"Yeah...are they, like...the Big Three Aizawa-Sensei talked about?" wondered Jirou as she whispered back.
The other classmates that met these three older teenagers were also wondering the same thing.
Midoriya blinked at the three older students.
Hey, the Big Three are those third-year students from the cafeteria? Wow...I wonder what kind of Quirks they have?
Bakugou looked on at the three students with an unimpressed glare.
So this is the Big Three, huh? ...Feh. I could take them.
Aizawa came up beside them and announced to his class, "Everyone, these three will be here to discuss Hero-Work Studies and how they improved, so I expect you all to join in and learn what kind of experiences each one of these students had already learned. Now, with that said, put your gym uniforms on. We're going over to Gym Gamma."
"Actually, if I can suggest something before we go to the gym?" Mirio said with a hand raised.
Aizawa glanced at the blonde teenage male, "Sure. Suggest away."
"Thanks!" Mirio said with a bright smile. He turned his attention to the kids in the class, "I want to actually exclude some students from this upcoming demonstration, mainly the kids that were…well, attacked last night."
All nine students blinked, while the rest of the class looked confused.
"Wait, we're being excluded?" Midoriya asked Togata.
"Well, yeah. I thought that maybe since you and your classmates were in that incident last night, you and the others would still be a little shook up and wanted to stay behind to recover from it," Mirio stated, "Also, you guys still might be injured from the attack, so we don't want to try and worsen your wounds while teaching you all."
"What the fuck does that mean?" Bakugou asked Togata harshly.
Mirio, Nejire, and Tamaki look over to Bakugou, the former blinking at his rather blunt question, while the other two looked a little surprised by his tone and question.
"Bakugou. Watch your tone and language," Aizawa warned him.
Bakugou sneered, "You saying that you'll fight us all on? Go ahead and beat these extras, but you won't beat me."
Mirio blinked again, "...Well...I don't really know what to say to that."
Nejire pouted, "Now don't act all cocky! We're just here to give you all examples of how you can improve your fighting styles and Quirks."
"I already perfected my Quirk, and I chose my fighting style. If one of you wants to fight me head-on, then go ahead. I'll beat either of you and show you that I can be Hero material."
"Bakugou," Eraserhead was now looking at him with narrowed eyes, activating his Quirk as his tone has a warning and threatening edge to it.
Tamaki frowned at Bakugou's behavior, "I don't like this guy's attitude," he mumbled.
Mirio hummed, "...Well, we'll see if you are then," he said with a smile.
"Is that a challenge?" Bakugou glared at him.
Shrugging while still having a smile, Togata said, "Whatever you wanted it to be."
"...Tch," Bakugou looked away with narrowed eyes glaring at the surface of his own desk.
The rest of the class sweatdropped a little nervously.
Some of the kids were also thinking multiple thoughts...
Ugh, way to make a great impression on our class, Bakugou. Mina.
That guy really has problems. Tsuyu.
Come on, Baku-bro, don't start something now. Kirishima.
Man, what a jackass. Jirou.
Seriously? Why does Bakugou have to always start something? Ochako.
How rude! Bakugou should really learn some manners to speak to his elders respectfully! Iida.
Dude, Bakugou needs to take a chill pill. Kaminari.
Idiot. Todoroki.
What a delinquent. Momo.
...Man, that Nejire girl is HOT. Mineta.
Ugh...Kacchan, why do you always have to antagonize someone to fight you? Midoriya.
Izuku glanced at his once childhood friend and frowned.
He must still be a little frustrated about last night's broadcast.
He looked away and stared at the surface of his desk to think.
But still...he shouldn't get all worked up about that...in fact, he shouldn't have gotten that worked up back at the entrance of the school.
Midoriya thought about yesterday, and how Joker and his crew got the one-up on them...and hearing what Kacchan told him at the cafeteria today.
Get stronger, Deku.
"...Actually, Togata? I want to participate," Midoriya told the older student.
Mirio looked back at Midoriya, "Huh? Uh, you sure?"
Bakugou snapped his direction to Izuku.
The fuck? Bakugou thought.
Momo looked over to Izuku in surprise, as well as everyone else.
"...Yes. I'm sure. I...I want to learn how I can defeat an opponent effectively, as well as know what I can do to improve my Quirk," Izuku stated.
The Big Three looked at the boy, Mirio staring at him as he analyzed Izuku.
Then, all of a sudden, Momo got up, "I-I want to get better too!" she said with a determined nod.
Ochako, surprised that Momo announced and stood up, also decided to follow suit. "M-Me too!"
"I also wish to better myself and try to hone in on my reflexes!" Iida announced.
Todoroki got up as well. "I also might need to improve my reflexes and survey my surroundings a lot more. I really don't want another repeat of what we all went through."
"Yeah, man!" Kaminari got up in resolve, "I don't want to be useless in a fight!"
Jirou also got up and told them, "I want to improve my Quirk a lot more also! I want to at least heighten my senses whenever I use my ear-jacks!"
In fact, I could've caught them in time a lot sooner...but we were doing homework, and...well, I was close to Kaminari...
Mina and Tsuyu got up last, with Mina saying, "Yeah! I want to try to do the best that I can do!"
"Me too! *ribbit*!" Tsuyu said with a determined nod.
The Big Three looked on at the standing students, Neijire and Amakiji blinking in amazement at their dedication to improving themselves, while Togata looked on with an understanding smile. Aizawa couldn't help but give out a small smile to them.
Izuku, upon realizing he wasn't standing to emphasize his point, quickly got up and stood, saying, "Uh, yeah, we, uh, we would love to learn and prove to ourselves that we got what it takes!"
Togata couldn't help but let his smile grow even further on his lips. "Well, okay! If you want to, then I won't stop ya!"
Nejire grinned brightly while Tamaki nodded in approval, looking away from the students.
Midoriya nodded at them, an encouraging smile on his face, "Thank you!"
Bakugou, meanwhile, just looked at Izuku for a moment, until he turned his head away with a disgusted "Tch!".
- UA - Nedzu's Office -
"Hmm..." Nedzu hummed in interest as he stared at his computer screen. It took a bit of a minute, but he successfully hacked into the National Quirk Registry of Japan, and is now quickly scrolling through the selected residents that could have these aforementioned Quirks that Toshinori noted.
Upon looking through some files, he found some potential ones that could be the people who worked for Joker, these Quirks being similar to what was described.
...But that was all he could find.
There were still some missing...
"...Well...this is quite...intriguing," Nedzu muttered.
The only henchmen in Joker's crew that appeared in the databanks were just two people. But that would mean...Joker either contacted people out of the country, or he went out of the country to hire lackeys for him...
A phone rang on his desk, but Nedzu just disconnected the call.
Yes, I know, Mr. and Mrs. concerned parents of Class 1-A's students, I get that what happened last night was a horrifying display of what your child has to go through in hero courses, but I assure you, we will get to the bottom of capturing this perpetrator and make sure our students will be ready for anything, as well as let them be safe from any Villainous attacks in the future.
...The phone rang again.
Nedzu sighed bitterly, "I swear, once we capture this Joker and his crew, they will certainly pay for what they've done."
Then the intercom on Nedzu's desk buzzed in.
"Nedzu, sir? I have someone waiting for you outside your office. He, um, wants to see you," said Midnight through the intercom.
"I am quite busy right now, Midnight, so please tell that person that he will have to wait until I am fully finished with what I'm doing," Nedzu told her as he pushed on the button of the intercom.
"Uh...I don't think he's the type to wait any longer than he already has. It's Endeavor."
...Oh damn it all.
"Um, yeah, so, with that said, I think you might need to let him come into your office, sir." Midnight said a little nervously.
Nedzu sighed again, "Bring him in."
And soon, the No. 2 Hero strode right inside Nedzu's office.
"Principal Nedzu? I have some concerning questions about your school. Especially when my son is involved," Endeavor began, his tone low and grating.
"I assure you, Endeavor," started Nedzu, "Your son will have the best care, as well as have the utmost attention to his injury, and I will make sure our teachers will mold him into a fine Hero at our school."
"So far, I'm not impressed. His arm was shot by a measly bullet from a gun! I'm only glad he has his left arm and his fire side to defend himself!" Endeavor exclaimed, "What kind of teachers are you letting the boy learn from!? Amateur Heroes!?"
"Again, I assure you, this matter will be resolved once we find this culprit who incapacitated your son, as well as Class 1-A. Just be patient. This is all just a setback, and we will be dedicated to making your son into a proper Hero."
"...Hmph. Back in my day at this school, I had actual good teachers that taught me to go the distance in making me where I am now."
Which is why we fired some of them when we found out that they weren't being honest in their Heroics.
"Well, you do not need to worry about how your son is being taught at UA today. I trust in my staff and our education system that we will train the Heroes of tomorrow to be the most outstanding as they can be," Nedzu reassured.
Enji Todoroki just scowled at the principal, "I will see that you and your staff will. My legacy is on my son's shoulders, and I will not let him be a liability in Heroic work."
"I understand," Nedzu nodded, "We will surely not let this happen again, for your son's sake."
"...Hrmph. Make it so," Endeavor told him. He turned around and made his way out of the office, before turning his head to Nedzu, "Also, when you find the Villain who was responsible for that raid, give him to me. I will let this coward regret making a fool out of my son...and me."
"...I'll be sure you get the call," Nedzu said to him.
Enji nodded and exited Nedzu's office.
"...Now. Where were we?" Nedzu said as he got back to looking through the files on the Japan Quirk Registry.
...He keeps hearing a slight buzzing sound...
"...Hm...we need to have pest control to exterminate these flies around the cam-"
...Wait...
Nedzu stopped what he was doing.
...I heard the same buzzing noise in the teacher's lounge...
...He sat there...
...The buzzing stopped.
...He looked around the area he was in, trying to find wherever that noise was coming from.
"...Huh..."
...That was...peculiar...
"...I...think I should be a little more alert..."
Nedzu sat there still for a minute...until he cautiously went back to looking up the files of these two henchmen of the Joker's.
- In an Undisclosed Location, a Bar -
"...Hmm..." Shigaraki looked at last night's newscast again on a computer.
Kurogiri was standing nearby him.
As the video was playing on the computer with Shigaraki watching, other Villains were there with them in the bar, such as a sewn-up man, a high school girl, and a man in a bodysuit.
The girl, known as Toga Himiko, looked at Shigaraki with a lazily raised eyebrow and asked either one of the Villains, "What's he doing? He's been staring at last night's news for hours."
"Beats me. I don't know," the bodysuit man, known as Twice, said.
The sewn-up man, known as Dabi, said, "He's probably jealous about how this guy from last night made a mockery of those kids."
Heh. As well as my brother. That would surely piss off the old man.
Kurogiri looked at the video feed with Shigaraki, which the video now showed the part where All Might is telling Midoriya that he is a true hero.
"...Kurogiri. Do you know what that Stain guy was basically saying out in Hosu City before they arrested him?" Shigaraki asked him.
"Hmm...that Heroes have lost their way and have become corrupted, thinking about their own personal needs?" Kurogiri said.
"...Yes...all except for All Might...and maybe that normal-looking boy. He said that kid was a 'True Hero'...whatever this Villain did, it made that brat make All Might cry...yet, these kids got taken down by this...Joker and his crew..."
"...Are you thinking of recruiting him and his crew?" Kurogiri asked him.
"...Maybe...he did humiliate these UA kids, as well as UA...the only problem is, that they don't know what his Quirk is, so we don't know what he's capable of. We know what Quirks the other people that work for this guy are, but not the leader."
"...Just a theory, but what if he doesn't have a Quirk?"
"...Pfft. Wow, that's stupid, Kurogiri."
"Like I said, it was just a theory."
"Well, that theory really blows. I mean, if the leader of this group somehow is Quirkless, then I'll give it to the guy for rounding up a bunch of Quirked lackeys, but I find that hard to believe since this society is so focused on Quirks. That, and I wouldn't need him then. So he has to have a strong Quirk."
"Sometimes, Shigiraki, it's not about the Quirks. It's about how the mind plans things. The mind can be a dangerous tool as well," Kurogiri reminds him.
"Hmph..."
"You should take heed to Kurogiri's advice, Tomura. I can see and hear that you have been more in tune with your goal for the League of Villains lately. Use your mind to your fullest extent to lead the League."
Shigaraki frowned, "I know, Sensei. I'm just looking for stronger allies to join our cause."
"Yes, do keep recruiting more for our cause, Tomura. However, know that someone with intellect and with a plan can always give us the upper hand over our opponents. So far, Stain's resolve and declaration on eliminating Hero Society is our ember on the candle. And soon, we will grow as a flame, and then a fire. And then…we will spread."
Shigaraki sat there as he stared at All Might and Midoriya having their semi-father-and-son moment.
"...Yes. I will make sure of it, Sensei," Shigaraki said solemnly.
"Good. I know you will. In the meantime, try to find this Villain and his crew. I respect a Villain who can single-handedly embarrass UA and its staff, as well as its students."
"Hm," Shigaraki nodded, "I will."
Then, suddenly, a notification appeared on Shigaraki's computer screen.
"...Hm?" he looked at the notification on the screen.
Kurogiri also glanced at it.
"...What was that?"
"...I think...there's a message on my screen," Shigaraki revealed.
"...Oh? From who?"
Kurogiri asked Sensei, "It seems this message has the name of someone called...Mr. Roboto."
"Mr. Roboto?"
"Hrm...could be a virus." Shigaraki said, "I didn't think this computer even had an email address. Hmph. Oh well, I'll just ignore it and-"
"Wait."
Both Villains paused to hear what Sensei had to say.
"...Tomura. Open that message."
"What? Open it? Why?" Shigaraki asked.
"You heard on the news that one of the lackeys had a Cyborg Quirk, did you? They're known to probably hack into things. Perhaps this Cyborg Quirked individual is named Mr. Roboto?"
"..."
"...I think maybe it would be wise to open that message, Shigaraki," Kurogiri informed.
"Okay, okay, don't rush me."
He then opened it and read its contents.
"...Well? What does it say?"
"...It says..." Shigaraki narrowed his eyes, "...Huh..." he read it out loud.
My boss Mr. J wants to meet up sometime, but not now. We'll wait until Sunday rolls around. He's got a special surprise gift for the man in charge there that could be beneficial to your organization. For now, Mr. J wants to lay low where he is. In due time, he will meet up with you and the League soon. Until then, watch out for any news coverage and tuned in to maybe a certain talk show in the next coming days. Ciao.
Signed,
Hacker
"...Hmm...very peculiar..."
Shigaraki thought so as well, as did Kurogiri.
"...Mr. J? ...You don't think that...?" Kurogiri asked anyone.
"...Hm...well...things had certainly gotten...interesting," Shigaraki said with intrigued narrowed eyes and a grin growing on his face.
And that is it for this chapter! :D Don't worry, things will start to get moving forward a bit after a few more chapters. Also, I hope things aren't too outlandish or out there in this story, what with the fly on the wall, along with Nedzu hacking and whatnot. ^^; The Joker has some good henchmen, you know? X)
Tell me what you all think! I love to know if I did alright! :D ...I mean, I love to know if I did, actually. D:
Thank you all for reading and keep on rocking everybody! :D
-TSP