Welcome back to another chapter of A Hero's Creed! Not much to say here, so I'll get to the reviews and save the comments about the chapter for the end.
Coach Blahk: I don't know if this one will live up to the hype of the last one, but this is more of a set-up chapter anyway. Nezu knew about the Assassin in the Big 3 since their first year, I just used him to drop that there was one there. And poor Jiro has had her life turned upside-down. As for the "books" the first one will cover most of Izuku's time in high school well past Canon. After that, the other two will span years to decades and will be separate stories.
Gamelover41592: Glad to catch you off-guard.
LEGOBRICK13: I gain sustenance by watching you suffer! MWUAHAHAHA! Unfortunately for you, I have plans for EVERYONE, and not all of them are good. That includes 1-A, 1-B, and the Big 3. Also, I am not sorry. You'll see what I mean.
Monkey D. Conan: Momo is pretty naive, but I'm sure she'd consider it optimistic. As for your questions, we'll just have to wait and see.
Monster King: Ask and you shall recieve!
Planar-Walking-Entertainment: She really hasn't, but older siblings would usually sacrifice themselves for their younger siblings, especially with an age gap like Momo and Kyoryoku.
Ranger McAleer: Yeah, that would have just been mean.
stevenpiskunov2: I'm not done with Jiro quite yet! I knew most of the information you gave, but I don't think the Grey will play much of a role in this story. Even if it does, not for a long time.
Wizardwolf 1020: I never said the Assassins would even good, much less perfect. They can rationalize Eri's training since Overhaul is still alive and out there, but it's the same sort of "brainwashing" that come from anyone being raised by others. Religion and/or country values, these things are instilled in the young the same way. The Assassins at least recognize that they're hypocrites that way. As for Jiro, I think I laid it out that their reasoning was that she'd just overhear something else at some point and they'd rather have her as an asset. Again, they aren't really the good guys but have a demented "greater good" mentality. I liked Coach Blahk's summary in their review.
zakan: Glad you liked it!
Chapter 53:
New Recruitment
Tuesday- six days until work-studies
Kyoka couldn't focus on the lesson, Midnight's words nothing but a droning buzzing in her ears. Her brain was filled with the limited information Izuku, Tsuyu, and Aizawa had been willing to tell her lest she stumble on some useful piece of information and not know it would be of interest to them. There was a long, worldwide war between the Assassins and Templars, said war so pervasive that both sides regularly infiltrated all levels of society in an attempt to one-up the other. While the Assassins killed people, the Templars still had their fair share of atrocities, the entire Second World War having apparently been orchestrated by the Templars as an excuse to wipe out compromised Assassins and scour Europe for ancient technology the three had refused to elaborate about. Logically, it was ridiculous; no war could have gone on for so long without the populous finding out, but Kyoka had sensed no lies in their words. Whatever they told her, they fully believed it.
And it turned out Momo was a member of this shadowy organization of the elite. A newer one, yes, but a Templar all the same. And it was now Kyoka's unwanted job to report any suspicious words or statements from the raven-haired genius.
She hated it. She hated the secrecy and the lies. Why couldn't everyone just get along? Why couldn't the two sides meet on neutral ground and come to an understanding? If both sides were fighting for peace, weren't they hypocrites by killing each other over it?
"Jiro?" someone asked, the punk girl's head snapping up at the sound of her name.
"Y-Yes?"
"Can you answer the question?" Midnight asked.
"I-I… uh…" She fumbled, trying to figure out the question based on the old Superhero Art images on the board behind their teacher. "Th-The answer… is… uh…"
The PA system crackled, students and teacher alike glancing at the speaker.
"Pardon the interruption," the squeaky voice of the school principal said. "Would Kyoka Jiro please come to my office? Kyoka Jiro, please come to my office."
'Thank you!' she mentally screamed, all but jumping to her feet. Not waiting for Midnight to dismiss her, Kyoka hurried out of the classroom and booked it to the principal's office as fast as she could without running. She reached Nezu's door rather quickly, knocking on it.
"Please, come in." Kyoka slipped into the room, shuffling to one of the open seats. Nezu studied her for a minute. "Tea or coffee?"
"U-Um, tea please?"
Nezu nodded and hopped out of his seat, the sentient rat-bear-dog-whatever making his way to his tea table.
"You know," he began, "when I told Midoriya I found the war between the Assassins and Templars something I did not have a place in and a source of amusement, I did not think he would entertain me so soon."
"Wh-What?" Kyoka gasped, the principal's ear twitching at her noise. His paws flipped through his selection of tea before ultimately deciding on an orange chamomile for its calming effects. He made two cups and moved back to the desk, offering the trembling girl one of them.
"I… I don't understand, sir," Kyoka tried.
"Speaking to me is not considered a leak, Jiro," the animal told her. "I full-well know about the shadow war that has some of my students on opposite sides. I have made UA a safe ground where neither is allowed to directly interfere with the students nor staff on the grounds lest they face expulsion. Rather, I am quite of the opinion that no one who wishes to be free should be involved by either side."
"I-Is that why you called me here?"
"Officially, you are here so I may confirm your work-study with Scale Run," Nezu commented, almost idly pressing his APROOVED stamp onto her request. "She may be aware of the war or she may be unconnected. I have an excellent information network, but I am not all-but-omnipotent beyond the grounds UA, much as I would like to be. Unofficially, I wish to offer you my protection until your graduation."
"You would do that for me?"
"It would not be free," the principal noted, holding up a nubbin. "As I told Midoriya last week, everything I do is for the sake of my own amusement. Certainly, I could spin a tale of altruism and wanting to better society with my position as the head of UA, but I am not one for lies and half-truths while talking to my students. Despite my sentience and intelligence, I am still an animal and derive pleasure from my own gratification. I enjoy this human society and its luxuries and wish to see it continue."
"But…" Kyoka racked her brain for a response, Nezu sipping his tea as she did. "But why offer me protection, then? If this is all for your own amusement, why would you get involved on my behalf? Wouldn't you rather see me flounder?"
"I did say I am selfish, but I still care for all my students," Nezu answered, stirring his tea slowly. "Yours is a unique circumstance up to this point. Certainly, many a sound- or hearing-based Quirk have accidentally learned of the war within these halls, but each chose one side over the other rather quickly, typically the side of whomever first explained to them. You, however, now have worry about yourself affecting your studies because you feel caught in the crossfire. If you accept my proposal, I will inform the Assassins that you are under my protection and that any leaks you may cause would fall on my shoulders. In return, you will perform tasks for me and amuse me when I ask, whether that be innocent pranks or looking for specific items. The animal kingdom does follow the law of the jungle, after all, and everyone must pull their weight for their pack."
"So I'm just trading a shadowy master I can't see for one I can?" Kyoka sighed. She shrugged. "Well, at least I don't have to worry about accidently saying something that will cost me my head. Let me guess, you already have something for me to do?"
"No, not yet," the principal answered, much to Kyoka's surprise. "I will after your work-study, but currently you only need to concern yourself with your classes. Although, there is another in your grade I am considering offering this deal to as well. Should that come to pass, I suppose I would be considered the leader of a new faction. Still, my position as an influential figure in society, my knowledge of information many on both sides would like to remain hidden, and the prowess of UA's lawyers will ensure the protection of you and anyone else while attending. The chaos of such an institution falling apart with my sudden murder and the activation of my subsequent contingencies would be far too public for the Assassins and Templars to get away with. And, if you show interest and promise in such a thing, I may be able to find work for you here after your graduation in return for your continued service."
"That… doesn't sound so bad," the student decided. "Can I decide on the job offer closer to graduation?"
"Of course! Do we have a deal?" Kyoka studied the paw Nezu extended. With only half-a-second's hesitation, she took it.
"Very good," the animal smiled, offering the pages about her work-study. "We shall talk more at a later date, Jiro. For now, please enjoy the rest of your week."
"Thank you, sir." Jiro relaxed and downed the rest of her own tea. She offered the principal a respectful bow before taking her leave. Nezu waited several moments until he was certain the girl was well out of hearing range.
"This," he grinned to himself, "will be very entertaining!"
-AHC-
"Why do I have to talk to her?" Shinso questioned, the purple-haired student staring at Izuku. Students shuffled around them, packing their things and laughing with their friends at the end of the day. "I don't even know her!"
"No yet," Izuku replied, "but Hatsume would be an excellent connection. She's a brilliant inventor but I've run out of reasons to talk to her myself. My equipment won't need repairs or updating until after our work-studies. You, however, are still getting use to using gear. You'll get some excellent equipment out of it, but we need you to probe her for information Tsu and I have not been able to get with Power Loader listening."
"What sort of information?" Shinso asked, familiar but still unused to these non-conflict missions.
"Hatsume seems resistant to legalities when it comes to her inventions. We need to know if she thinks they're just boring or if she thinks they stifle her creativity."
"Why couldn't you have gotten that information?"
"If Power Loader heard me, it could have been considered incitement to break the law," Izuku explained. "If Hatsume considers herself too limited by legality, we will get her in contact with some of the Brotherhood's engineers as a group whose purpose is to discuss blueprints it would be illegal to build and find the legalities around it. We would like to phase her in as a contact for her ideas if nothing else."
"I understand," Shinso sighed, running a hand through his hair. "How am I supposed to get her to meet them?"
"With this." Izuku held up a piece of paper with an address and time scribbled on it as well as a lanyard. "This is a weekend pass to a Hero tech showcase happening during our work-studies. The Support Course has a two-week internship at the same time as our work-studies so Power Loader can take some time to complete his minimum Hero work requirements to keep his license. As an inventor, Hatsume shouldn't be able to resist going. The request is for her to meet with a couple of our inventors there. They speak her language and should get her interested."
"So I just need to get this to her? That's it?"
"And the instructions for the meet up. That's it."
"Alright. I'll do it."
"Good man," Izuku grinned, patting the taller boy on the shoulder. "And get some good gear out of it while you're in there. Don't get blown up."
"Don't—?"
Something blew up, Izuku barely flinching as Shinso jumped at the sound. They turned as the great, metal door to the Design Studio creaked, tipping off its hinges to crash to the floor.
"Damn it, Hatsume!" the voice of Power Loader yelled from inside. "I just replaced that door! You should be packing up already!"
"But there's just so much to do before our second internships start!" a female voice Shinso suspected was Hatsume replied.
"You still haven't managed to land a second internship," Power Loader reminded her.
Izuku sent Shinso a quirked eyebrow, his head gesturing toward the raised voices. Shinso hung his own head slightly and muttered a silent prayer to any higher power that would listen. Izuku wished him luck with a pat on the back forceful enough to send him forward a step toward his fate. Shinso turned, but Izuku was already lost in the crowd.
"Hatsume, it takes more work than just walking up to a company and demanding an internship. Especially since the last one blacklisted you."
"They just couldn't keep up with my genius!"
"It took the intervention of UA's lawyers to keep you from getting sued."
"It's not my fault their blast doors weren't as strong as UA's! How was I supposed to know they weren't built to withstand 652 PSI? The UA one's can!"
"And clearly that's not enough..."
Hatsume and Power Loader continued to argue as Shinso got closer, the purple-haired boy getting more concerned about interacting with this Hatsume person. The argument made her sound like an absolute menace.
"U-Um, excuse me?" Hatsume and Power Loader didn't seem to hear him, the pair too focused on each other as little drones cleaned up the ash leftover from the explosion that had knocked the door loose. Some of said ash covered Hatsume's front, the only clean part of her being two rings around her golden eyes that must have been covered by the soot-coated goggles resting on her forehead. "H-Hey!"
The pair shifted, turning to the newest Hero student at his yell, one with curiosity and the other with annoyance. Said annoyance seemed to shift into something else as the start of a plan seemed to stir in Power Loader's eyes. Understandably not wanting to become a simple pawn to the unfamiliar teacher, Shinso stepped into the room.
"Excuse me, I'm here to speak to Hatsume."
"That's me!" the pink-haired girl said, practically running toward him. "What can I do for you, Eyebags?"
"Eyebags?" Shinso echoed. "Wait, I know you. You were on Midoriya's team during the paintball battle in the Sports Festival."
"Who's Midoriya?"
"You call him Freckles," Power Loader sighed, a hand on his helmet-mask where his face would be.
"Oh, Freckles!" Mei realized. "So you're a friend of Freckles, Eyebags?"
"My name is Hitoshi Shinso, and yes, Midoriya recommended I talk to you about some gear."
"Good," the teacher interrupted, grabbing both students by the scruff of their necks. He picked them up, ignoring the way the drones started buzzing around Hatsume to clean the ash from her face, hair, and outfit. "You can do that on the way out. Shinso, please make sure Hatsume at least gets off campus. Thank you."
He all but literally kicked them out of the Design Studio, two emergency doors emerging from the walls to slam shut as soon as Power Loader tossed Hatsume's bag over the threshold. Shinso sent an incredulous look back at the door, never having received such treatment from a teacher, but Hatsume jumped to her feet and patted some remaining ash from her knees as if Power Loader threw her out of the workshop that way every day. For all Shinso knew, he probably did.
"Alright, Eyebags," Hatsume said, grabbing her bag. "You said you wanted some gear, yeah? How soon will you need it?"
"Our work-studies start on Monday," Shinso replied, getting to his feet. Hatsume was already several steps down the hallway.
"Oh, that'll be a rush order unless you want something I've already built since I'm not allowed to offer what I build in my home shop. Something about 'oversight legality.'" She huffed, using air quotes.
"What if can solve your 'no internship' issue?"
Hatsume stopped, turning to him slowly. Her irises expanded and contracted as she used her Quirk to study every facet of his face.
"You know people in the support industry, Eyebags?"
"One, my name is Shinso," the boy said, holding up a finger. He added another to the first. "Two, I have some contacts who do. We can talk about it on the way."
"Perfect!" Hatsume brought up her wrist projector, Shinso's eye twitching as he noticed she'd made a new listing titled 'Eyebags'. "So, tell me about your Quirk."
"It's called Brainwashing," Shinso began. "If I say something and get a verbal response of any sort from someone, I can put them into a trance and get them to do simple tasks. Nothing quick or complex like fighting for me or anything, but I can get them to move or tell the truth or the like."
"But it doesn't have to be question-and-answer activation?"
"Nope. Even a sigh from a bad pun will do."
"What about voice modulation?"
"What?"
"Voice modulation," the inventor repeated as they exited the building. "Making your voice sound like other people's? Or ventriloquism? Does your Quirk work through speakers? How many can you affect at one time?"
"Now I see why Midoriya recommended you," the boy muttered, rubbing his eyebags. "I'm hoping to do a lot of on-the-job testing with Ms. Joke. We've got three weeks for our work-studies, after all."
"Then tech for your Quirk will include a voice modulator with voice replication AI and a speaker drone," Hatsume nodded, muttering schematic ideas and what materials she'd need for them under her breath. Her fingers were nothing but a blur as she typed notes.
"All this will be within regulation, right?"
"Hmm?" the rosette blinked only to close her eyes and sigh. "Dammit, I'll need to look up the laws around voice copying."
"You don't really like laws, do you?" Shinso probed as they stepped through the UA Barrier. "Stuffy? Limiting?"
"It's so annoying!" Hatsume replied, throwing her arms up. "It's like twice a day Power Loader-sensei looks over my shoulder and names some legal reason I can't make something! 'Hatsume, you can't have that much base power due to the power max laws of 2124. No, Hatsume. Someone already has a patent for that calibration. Change it. No, Hatsume. All AI that advanced has been highly regulated since the mid-2000's. I don't care if it doesn't have human emotions, you have to dial it back.' It's maddening!"
'Just as Midoriya predicted,' Shinso thought. Aloud, he said, "I think I can give you a bit of an outlet for that."
"What, really‽" Hatsume practically screamed, rounding on him.
"Sure, but there's another thing I want from you in time for my work-study. I use a nano-carbon fiber scarf similar to Eraserhead, the Homeroom teacher for 1-A. Can you upgrade it to give it elemental properties? Like electricity, cold, and heat?"
"Oh, a challenge!" Hatsume nodded. "What's in it for me, then?" Shinso reached into his pocket, pulling out the lanyard. It caught the light, Hatsume's eyes widening to comedic proportions. "I-I-I-Is that—?"
"A weekend pass into the…" —he read the name on the lanyard— "HTSE? It is."
"The Hero Technology Showcase and Exhibition," she whispered with some kind of reverence, reaching for the pass only to pull back, like a collector afraid that touching something would drop its value. "H-How? Those have been sold out for five months!"
"I did say I've got friends," he grinned. Was this overkill to get her cooperation? Maybe, but it was clear to work. "If they gave you an internship offer, would you acc—"
"HELL YES!" She snatched the pass from his hand before hunching over it, staring at its lamination. Shinso blinked, having flashbacks to when he and his dad watched Lord of the Rings years ago. He could practically hear her whispering "precious" under her breath.
Now, wait. She was actually doing that.
Shinso checked his watch and estimated a few calculations in his mind. Leaving Hatsume in her obsessive stupor, he pulled out his phone and made a call.
"Shinso," Izuku said after a couple rings. "How'd it go?"
"She's all but praying over the pass," the purple-haired student commented. "You were right."
"Good to hear."
"You know, she still needs an internship. Any chance we could speed up that meeting and find one for her?"
Izuku hummed on the other end of the line before asking a question to someone else. He and the individual traded a few questions before Shinso heard his friend focus on the call again.
"Almost certainly. Tell her she should have an offer tomorrow."
"Will do. Thanks. See you in a bit." Shinso hung up and turned, finding Hatsume exactly where he'd left her. He stepped forward, the girl curling around the pass and actually hissing at him. "…Really?"
"Mine!"
"Yes, yours," Shinso nodded. "Look, you should have an internship offer tomorrow, so you don't have to worry about that. Instead, you can spend all your time working on my agreed-upon gear, yeah?"
Hatsume blinked. Once. Twice. Her pupils spun and shifted as Zoom took in every detail. She stood, still clutching the HTSE pass to her chest, and stepped toward him.
"What was your name again?"
Shinso's shoulders dropped, the boy blinking slowly. "Really? You forgot already?"
"Names take up space in the brain I could be using for equations."
"My name is Hitoshi Shinso."
"Hitoshi Shinso," she repeated, as if tasting the name on her tongue. "Shinso, we are gonna make so many babies together."
"Wh-What‽" Shinso stumbled backward into a wall. Hatsume, clearly considering personal space an option rather than a necessity, stepped into his so that she practically pinned him to the wall, her chest pressing against his stomach. She was considerably shorter than the Assassin Recruit, 20 centimeters' (7.87 inches') difference making her stare up at him.
"You got me a pass to the HTSE and an internship," she said. "That means I'm your personal technician, ok? I'll put in double the effort and make sure you get famous, Shinso! Everyone will see you using my babies! I'll make you the best!"
"Heh," the boy grunted, trying to force down his embarrassed blush. "Wh-What happened to Eyebags?"
"I have to take the time to remember the names of my VVIPs," Hatsume grinned. "Just let me know if you need anything at all!" Without waiting for him to answer, she turned and started walking away, already muttering to herself about what she needed to test at home before school started the next day only to pause. She spun. "Shinso!"
"Uh, yeah?"
"Give me your number!" Invading his personal space again, she swiped his phone and swapped their contact information. "Thanks! I'll update you on ideas and progress for our babies! Bye!"
She practically skipped away, a pink, overall-clad bundle of chaotic energy. Shinso stared at his phone, dumbfounded, as he tried to understand what just happened. Someone snickered, the boy looking up at a small crowd of old women and elementary kids.
"Th-That's not— We're not— It— Don't look at me like that!"
"I didn't say anything, dearie," one of the women said with a coy smile. One of the children tugged at her sleeve.
"Gamma, is that what flirting looks like?"
"Go away!" Shinso beat a hasty retreat, silently cursing to himself as the burning in his cheeks tingled against the cooling air. He'd make Izuku shove his own head in a bowl of ice water for this if it was the last thing he did.
-AHC-
"Midoriya, you—!" Shinso stomped into the room in his Recruit robes, white trimmed in a purple so deep it was almost black. Those in the room turned to look at him, Tsuyu, Aizawa, and surprisingly Hiryu Rin blinking. Shinso pulled up short as he made eye contact with his classmate, Rin dressed in a dark sweatshirt that covered his UA uniform with his hands tucked in the front pocket. "Uh… Clearly I missed something."
"You didn't tell him, ribbit?" Tsuyu asked, turning a side eye on the Chinese Assassin.
"I wanted to keep my involvement as quiet as possible," Rin replied. "The more people who know, the more chance of someone slipping up. Especially new recruits."
"I feel like I should feel insulted," Shinso muttered, "but I'm not sure."
"That does not matter," Aizawa insisted, gesturing for Shinso to close the door and join them. "In preparation for the separation of your work-studies, I… asked Rin to come clean with any secrets he has been keeping from us, especially any that would affect your cover within UA. In response, he admitted to having an accomplice."
"And, to be clear," Rin emphasized, "my accomplice is not a member of your Brotherhood. Nor are they a member of mine. For all intents and purposes, they have acted only as a spy and information gatherer in my stead and do not intend to ever take a life with their own hands unless given no other option. I need that to be clear before revealing their identity."
"This person can be trusted?" Aizawa pressed.
"I trusted them with my life and they have not let me down."
Aizawa's eyes stared into Rin's as if searching his soul for any hint of insincerity. When he found none, Aizawa sighed and gestured for Rin to continue. Rather than say anything, Rin tapped his foot twice.
A pair of eyes opened in his shadow, Aizawa, Izuku, and Tsuyu all instinctually jumping back and taking defensive stances. Rin did not move as a figure began to rise out of his shadow. First was a shock of white hair before skin as dark as ink. The figure, clothed in a UA uniform, grinned a Cheshire smile and took a bow.
"Members of the Osaka Brotherhood," Rin commented. "My accomplice and confidant Shihai Kuroiro."
"Let me tell you, it was not easy to get this guy to come forward," Kuroiro said, gesturing at Rin with a single thumb. "Soon as he told me everything, I said he needed to get in contact with the local Brotherhood. I'm sure you can imagine how well that went over. Took almost all Summer to get him to come around."
"And I am still not certain it was the best choice," Rin grumbled.
"Kuroiro?" Izuku blinked. He tilted his head. "Actually, that makes a lot of sense. With your Quirk: Black, you're a perfect spy. If I may hypothesize, you probably stumbled upon Rin making a call home and confronted him about suspicious details you overheard from the shadows? Japan and China have never really been on the best of terms, after all."
Rin and Kuroiro glanced at each other. The latter grinned.
"Nailed it to a T," the white-haired student said. "I spend most of my time in the shadows since I tend to stand out otherwise. On a trip home after cleaning duty, I took a shortcut through a back alley only to hear Rin apparently talking to himself. Turns out he was talking to his Mentor on a small communicator. I threatened going to our teacher as soon as he hung up and he told me everything. After I understood the situation, I just had to help."
"So even the great Chinese Assassin Rin isn't so infallible," Izuku needled.
"Shut. Up," Rin shot back.
"It's great to have you, Kuroiro," Tsuyu said, offering a hand. "This life isn't easy, ribbit, but confidants like you certainly make it easier."
"I'm just trying to keep my friend from having his throat slit," the shadow-traveling boy replied, accepting the frog-girl's offered hand. "Foreigners have a hard enough time in Japan."
"It does not happen often," Aizawa put in, "but I will admit to being surprised. Kuroiro, how long have you known?"
"About three months now," the boy replied. "I caught Rin a little before the Sports Festival. Didn't figure out Shinso had joined you until the summer camp, though."
"Of course," Izuku realized, a hand rubbing his facial scar. "We had our treetop meeting outside at night. The darkness would have been perfect for your spying."
"And what sort of information did you discover?" the teacher questioned.
"I overheard an argument between Yaoyorozu and Ibara," Kuroiro told him. "She begged Yaoyorozu to abandon the Templars, citing her own denial due to her religious beliefs and her parents' subsequent choice to have another child. Their conversation nearly turned to blows."
"Interesting. Thank you. In that vein, do you know how to access our Den?"
"Not really, no. I stayed in Rin's shadow with my eyes closed. I could feel him moving but not the direction."
"Good. I ask that if ever you join Rin in coming here again that you do the same. This location is hidden for a reason and, even as an informant and confidant, we would rather you not know how to access it. Understood?"
"Yessir." Kuroiro gave an overchoreographed salute.
"Very well." Aizawa turned to the rest of the students. "Are you all prepared for your work-studies?"
"Principal Nezu approved of my work-study with Silkie over a week ago, ribbit."
"I will be training with Master Usagiyama," Izuku nodded.
"Ms. Fukukado can't wait for us to start," Shinso commented.
"Yes, I suppose she can't," Aizawa muttered under his breath. "Do not believe anything she says."
"I'll be working under Ryukyu," Rin said. "Even limiting my Quirk to my scales, I believe I can learn several different applications under her."
"My work-study has not been approved yet," Kuroiro stated. "I put in a request with the Colorful Hero: Rainbow. I learned a lot from her during my internship, but she tends to procrastinate."
"Then we have nothing left to discuss," Aizawa nodded. "Apprentices, Recruit, do your stretches and prepare for training. Rin, please escort Kuroiro out of the Den. If you learn anything of importance, do not hesitate to contact us."
"Understood, Master," Rin replied. "Let's go, Kuroiro."
"Sure thing." The dark-skinned student stepped over and sunk into his classmate's shadow, one of his eyes winking at the others before both closed. The only indication that he was there was a slightly unnatural darkness to said shadow, one the Master Assassin and students only noticed because they were aware of his presence.
Rin bowed to Aizawa. He may not be an Assassin of the Osaka, but he would still give their Master Assassins the respect they deserved. His respect given, Rin took his leave.
"So, what training are we doing today, Master Aizawa, ribbit?" Tsuyu asked.
A sadistic grin crossed the man's lips, shivers running down his students' spines.
"You three have ten minutes to tag me with any attack. If you can't…" He let the threat hang as the three teens surrounded him, already fearing the punishment of failure from experience. "Begin."
-AHC-
Mirai Sasaki studied the pinboard before him, red lines of yarn wrapped around pushpins connecting pictures and written theories. His yellow eyes narrowed, trying to understand everything.
He was a tall man, lean with muscle built from years of Hero work. His smooth, shiny hair was a dark green with natural lines of yellow, a comb running through it carefully lest he use his fingers. His mouth was creased in a frown, emphasizing his angular features.
"I'm missing something," he hissed, his other hand tensing on his desk. "I know I am, but what?"
"Sir?" a voice asked, the door to his office opening as one of his Sidekicks entered. Bubble Girl had light blue skin and dark blue hair, her face covered in a clear gas mask. The upper part of her Hero costume was white and black, baring her midriff for quick use of her Quirk: Bubble, while her black tights were accented with white and gold shorts and mid-calf boots of the same colors. She stopped, papers in hand, as she recognized the board. "Sir, are you still obsessing over the Shie Hassaikai? Their facility burned down over a month ago. They're dead. We saw the bodies."
"It doesn't add up," the Hero sighed, sitting in his chair. He gestured, the blue-skinned woman bringing him the paperwork of his various Sidekicks' field reports for official confirmation. "It's too… convenient." He shook his head and turned to give the woman his full attention. "Anything to report?"
"We have a request," she said, gesturing to the top of the pile. "The Endeavor Agency says there's something suspicious about this new casino in Kyoto. I decided to do a little digging and found a video of Endeavor and the remaining Flaming Sidekickers getting kicked out for trying to investigate without a warrant."
"What were they looking for?"
"The Hero Killer, apparently," Bubble Girl shrugged. "Or someone supposedly connected to him. Endeavor seems to think they need someone less conspicuous to do the initial scouting."
"We'll consider it," Nighteye decided. "Might forward the request to another agency. Anything else?"
"The UA work-studies are coming up. We already pre-approved Lemillion for his last one."
Nighteye nodded, sifting through the papers.
"The lot that had the Shie Hassaikai hideout is for sale now."
"Buy it," the Hero ordered. "I don't care who you have to outbid. I want it. And call Tatchi."
"The P.I.?"
"We'll need his skills. Pass Endeavor's request to someone else. We're going over the Shie Hassaikai base with an investigative Quirk."
"But Sir—"
"Now, Awata."
Bubble Girl hesitated before nodding. "Yes Sir." She offered a small bow before exiting, leaving the pro Hero alone in his office. He turned back to the board, his fingers twiddling a pen.
His Quirk saw the future, but that was useless with a crime scene like the Shie Hassaikai hideout. Perhaps a Quirk that saw the past like Saito Tatchi's Photosensory would be more useful.
It would not be the first time he enlisted his cousin's help, after all.
End of Chapter 53
Hoo boy! Next chapter will officially start the work-studies and we've got several to follow: Izuku and Mirko, Tsuyu and Silkie, Shinso and Ms. Joke, Shoto and Woolen, Bakugo and North Squad Go, Rin and Ryukyu, Momo and Uwabami, and (if you all really want to see them) Kuroiro and Rainbow and Kyoka and Scale Run. I'll list the work-studies of the students we saw in Canon above the next chapter. As a note, the timeline is almost totally derailed at this point. In Canon, the attack on the summer camp led to Bakugo's abduction, leading to the rescue mission, All Might's retirement, and a subsequent increase in Villain activity forcing UA to speed up their work-studies and limiting which Heroes would train their students. None of that happened here, so a lot of this is far more calm. Business as normal for the superpowered society.
And, apparently, the MHA movie 3 would take place during the work-studies since it has Izuku, Bakugo, and Shoto all working under Endeavor. While Humarise is present in this world, they will not be starting any of their major plans to cause the movie events. They will play their roles much, much later.
What will our students encounter during their time outside the classroom? What is Nezu preparing or is he really out for his own entertainment? What will the Assassins and Templars get up to in the meantime? How will Shinso's Quirk mesh with Mei's tech and what might she think of next? Did Kuroiro's reveal surprise you? I did leave very careful wording about him during his and Rin's discussion during the summer camp. Finally, what will Nighteye find in the remains of the burnt-out Shie Hassaikai base and where might it lead him?
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-SwordOfTheGods