Nedzu had lost track of how many red lines he had crossed for this.

Not that it was important. Red lines and laws were a machination of the human mind, used by the few in a position of power to restrict and control the rest of their race. Not that he could blame them, though. Not entirely, anyway. The human race was so… susceptible and fearful to things they did not understand.

Quirks were a good example of this.

No one knew their true origin. It was speculated that it had been a virus spread by rats, but no one had proof of it as there had been no indication of a quirk factor outside the human race. Only recently, as in within the latest century, animals were found carrying the right genome and displaying this mutation.

So, in Nedzu's mind, humans were the original carriers of this mutation and other races hadn't been affected until now.

And it was this confusion about the origin of quirks, the inability to understand them and pin down when and why it had all started, that had humanity as a whole spiral into widespread panic and violence against the different.

Rules and laws were applied to control the escalation. The first quirk users were ostracized if lucky, interned in a repeat of old European history if unlucky, or used as guinea pigs in the worst case scenario.

Nowadays humanity had come to terms with the presence of quirks only because it had no other choice and their fear of the unknown had turned to… other things that were less abstract and more direct.

The Nomu and the USJ incident had hit hard. The Kamino Ward fight had hit even harder.

This…

People were scared. Terrified.

Yet those who had been there in first person, filming whatever event was going on, had spoken of some sort of euphoric wonder. Of how they wished to be part of the 'magic' once again and to bring friends to share the spectacle with.

Of course, experts and authorities pointed fingers at some sort of effect from the child's quirk, and that approaching this unknown individual was both very dangerous and that attempts should not be done.

It was another instance of humanity trying to control what they didn't know.

Nedzu would have rolled his beady eyes at that if the motion was an established habit.

Instead, he embraced it. Embraced the puzzle the golden child brought with welcoming arms and watched as it developed in front of his eyes. He delighted upon seeing as animals, creatures always considered beneath humanity in a way or in another, were granted the same gift as them, often displaying far more power than the average human.

If only he could be present to one of these events!

After all, there was something about it all that caused a little spark in the back of his mind that kept prodding and nagging and itching. Incessant since the first time he saw the first viral video with the stag. Always present to the point he grew distracted at times.

Aizawa found this absentmindedness worrying and had more than once brought up the issue in the privacy of his office. Thoughtful of him to keep it a private matter, but unnecessary as Nedzu had everything under control.

"Are you still looking for more information about that kid?"

Nedzu blinked and Aizawa was there, sitting in front of the desk and looking as bored as ever. On the surface anyway. Anyone that knew the man that hid under the hobo look also knew that he was exceptionally shrewd and intelligent.

Smart enough to catch onto Nedzu's latest three seconds of wandering thoughts.

"Yes," Nedzu reluctantly brought his mind to focus on the matter at hand. "I… cannot entirely explain it. There is something about the child that… that has took root in my mind."

He wouldn't call it an obsession, though. An obsession entailed him getting so gripped by the whole situation that he'd just ignore everything else altogether, becoming a detriment to himself and the system he was the head of.

"I have counted three distinct appearances," he explained. "One in northern Germany, one in the south Pacific, and one somewhere in the Texan desert, near the Mexican border."

Since Aizawa was here now, and he trusted the man, might as well voice his thoughts out loud. After all, even if not as intelligent as him, the underground hero was capable of interesting and unique insights. More than once he had come to certain conclusions while discussing with him.

"Three?" the man asked, one eyebrow raised and bored face shifting slightly into a more attentive one. "I heard of only two."

Nedzu's whiskers twitched, but otherwise the chimera did not show any emotion other than a cryptic smile. "I might have… found a few more videos of a third encounter," he confessed, briefly glancing at the monitor on the desk. "I assure you, nothing bad happened during this! Just the child playing around with the locals."

Honestly, though, humans really needed to understand that just because they had an expensive firewall surrounding their precious servers, it didn't mean their stuff was completely safe. Anyone worth their salt could get in without actually breaking anything. If the military really wanted to keep stuff safe, they should keep it away from any connection to the world wide web.

Nedzu himself had been like a ghost in this occasion. In and out, phasing through the wall as if it wasn't even there and grabbing a copy of whatever he wanted before leaving things undisturbed.

There were several reports, one for each individual sent to intercept the child, but Nedzu disregarded those in favor of seeing the encounter for himself by watching the accompanying videos.

Oh, and what an encounter it had been! Nedzu truly envied those that had been present, wishing he had been there to challenge the child's game himself.

"Define 'playing'."

Nedzu smiled, waving a little paw to dispel the man's narrowed gaze. "Oh, nothing to worry about!" His smile grew, and in turn Aizawa's gaze narrowed even more. "The child invited the locals to play a game of tag. Allowed them to use their quirks too if they thought it would help them. And promised a reward if one of them was able to get to the end. Needless to say, none of the locals was able to win, so we don't know what kind of reward it was supposed to be."

And maybe, just maybe, the promise for a reward was all a bait to get them to play. A tactical ruse, in Aizawa's words.

Besides, he had said the truth. Despite the wild display of powers, the child showed no intention to harm in none of the videos he had obtained. Never went above anything that the opposite party couldn't handle, and if anyone risked getting hurt, the game would be halted until everyone was safe once again.

It was a true pity the military took the entire thing too seriously and decided that they didn't like it. Nedzu wouldn't be surprised if in one of the future reports the event would be referred as an initial attack to test their strength.

Still, despite his reassurances, Aizawa wasn't completely sold on the child's innocent intentions. Not yet, anyway. And Nedzu couldn't blame him for being wary. After all, all they had were speculations and observations, not clear answers. The League of Villains was still at large, and while the Nomu factory had been dismantled, there could be more hiding somewhere undiscovered.

The child himself could be one. A more advanced product of a power-obsessed madman that had escaped control and was now going around doing what they thought was fun.

Nedzu really hoped that was not the case. No one should go through experimentation. Not even the worst of humanity. Not even in those moments when he thought less of them for their insensate behavior he would wish such fate.

Much less wish it on a child as young as this one.

So Nedzu ignored that possibility as long as he could and trusted in that little spark in the back of his mind that told him there was more to it all. So, so much more. And that it was all hidden in some little, forgotten corner of his mind.

He just had to… remember? Why had he even forgotten such a thing when he never forgot things?

"I worry." Aizawa said, looking at Nedzu with that observant gaze of his. Anyone else than the chimera would have shivered. "This child might mean no harm, but we can't deny it might turn into a danger."

Aizawa had only ever seen the videos with the stag and the whale, but not the ones Nedzu had copied for himself. He had never seen how the kid could break the earth and lift it up into the air, creating some sort of obstacle course. He had never seen how they could teleport from atop this winding path and appear just in time to grab someone when they fell. He had never seen how the flying structure remained unchanged when they left, leaving the group safely warped back to the ground.

Nedzu wondered what the man would say if he saw those videos.

"Oh yes, I understand," he replied, "This child is powerful and could pose a danger to everyone and themselves. It would be best if they didn't fall into the wrong hands, don't you think?"

There were so many 'wrong hands' in the world. Villains, criminals, selfish people that would use the child to gain fame and fortune. All of those, however, paled in comparison to All For One and the wrong kind of scientists. Those were the worst and Nedzu would do everything in his power to prevent them from getting their hands on this kid. Even if he had to break laws and turn against governing bodies.

He felt his tongue run over his whiskers and a little part of his mind went to wonder how he was never able to curb this more animalistic part of him. The rest of it, though, was still churning around this whole thing and he doubted it would ever find rest until he found all the answers he needed.

"I…" he took a breath and let it out slowly. "I believe we are looking at something… more. I cannot explain it. Not yet. I have all these little hints and pieces, but what connects them still eludes me. Whoever this child is… it is as if they are stirring something in my mind. Something that feels… like a distant dream that has faded so much that all I have is faint feelings and a nagging 'this is important'."

Even if Aizawa was there, it was as if he wasn't. Nedzu could feel his frustration resurface and it troubled him, because he never really let it out. Showing anything but amicable and positive emotions always scared humans.

But then this was Aizawa, and Aizawa was different!

"Perhaps I am letting my… primordial instinct speak too much, but…" he looked at the man on the other side of the desk, beady eyes never straying away from the calculating gaze he was receiving. "The child is important! Far more than any one of us can ever imagine! I watch his ventures and… and I am filled with this… feeling I cannot understand! It is exciting and marvelous! I… I long to be there, Aizawa! I long to see all of this with my own eyes, not from behind a screen that does no justice!"

He realized he was ranting. And that at some point he had jumped on top of the desk, pacing and holding his tail stiff up into the air in a show of inner agitation.

And he realized that this… this was not how he should behave.

Humans were always scared of the different and unknown. Quirks might have marginally mitigated that, but he was still an animal despite his high intellect. Humanity still considered him not a part of them despite their coexistence.

"I apologize…"

He truly was, because of all the people he knew and met, Aizawa was one of the few that was indifferent about what one was. All he looked at was what one could do and only then he decided if they were worth his time. This was a worthy quality in Nedzu's eyes.

"I let… I let myself get carried away."

He relaxed his muscles, tail finally going back to a more acceptable position, and he jumped back onto his chair and resumed looking like a proper principal should look. Poised and calm. In control of his own emotions and being as helpful as possible.

But his nerves were frayed now, and Aizawa knew.

The man seemed to lean forward even more, hair cascading around his face like an unruly curtain. For a moment Nedzu feared he would tell him to go see Inui or something, but then the underground hero, bless him, threw what humans would call a 'curve ball'.

"You said 'his'." A pause and a slow blink. "How do you know?"

Nedzu froze.

Because it was true. In his rant, while caught in that whirlwind of emotions, he had said just that.

His.

"He is a boy…" he whispered back, hands gripping the edge of the desk in an attempt to ground himself. "Yes… yes! He is a boy! I know that now!"

But Nedzu still had no other answers. Only more questions. Questions that needed more information to be answered.

Only when he had more knowledge he could finally put the entirety of the puzzle together.