Disclaimer: I do not own My Hero Academia/Boku No Hero Academia, or any other property in this work that I did not make myself.

Toshinori's Choice

Chapter thirty-eight: The Yaoyorozu-Mineta friendship plan, part three

Izuku and his peers in Class 3-A were relaxing after a day of school work, unwinding in the Class 3-A dorm building. Izuku was having a late dinner with his friends Tenya, Shinso, and Todoroki. "...And so then I showed him a photo of Tsuyu while explaining I was planning on letting my hair grow to be as long as hers," Todoroki said in a casual, conversational tone to the guys he was eating with, "Hoo boy, you should have seen the look on his face when I said that."

"Todoroki, please tell me that you are joking about letting your hair grow that long," Tenya said, "It strikes me as odd enough as it is that most of our male peers, both here in 3-A and those in 3-B as well, had let their hair grow so long. But to let your hair grow as long as how Asui has hers?"

"Of course Todoroki is joking," Shinso said, "He only said that to his dad the last time he visited him at Tartarus just to screw with him because seeing guys with long hair apparently triggers that fiery sack of shit." Turning to look at Todoroki, Shinso said, "Umm, you don't have an issue with me saying your dad is a fiery sack of shit, do you?"

"I am literally the first person who'd agree with you on that assessment of my father," Todoroki replied, assuring his friend that there was no issue. Turning to look at Izuku, Todoroki said, "You've been awfully quiet thus far. What's on your mind, Midoriya?"

After swallowing a gulp of his drink, Izuku said, "I'm just thinking about that girl we helped Mineta rescue a few days ago, and how she can provide a lead to the pro heroes to help with with the Cornucopia case."

Tenya nodded in understanding. "Ah yes, that girl. Ayumu Tomo, I believe her name is." After Izuku nodded to confirm Tenya got Ayumu's name right, Tenya went on, "And Mineta was nothing but proper and respectful when helping to handle her. He politely declined Ayumu's... offer... to him on the grounds she was worked up over him saving her, and also she was clearly suffering from an addiction to some substance."

"He also asked about arranging to get help for Tomo," Shinso said, "Mainly rehab, but given she's providing details to the pro heroes to help with the Cornucopia case, Tomo is also getting security to protect her. I also heard that Uraraka's family is covering the costs of Tomo's rehab treatment?"

"Yes," Izuku replied, "Also Ochaco told me her parents are planning on hiring her as live in help at the mansion, have her trained as a maid. It'll give her an honest means of work so she won't have to do her... current profession... anymore, also it'll give her a place to stay so she won't be homeless." With an amused smirk, Izuku added, "Ochaco also said that Ayumu had asked if it'd be possible to let Mineta over to see her sometimes."

Teyna arched a wry eyebrow. "...Tomo really is serious about Mineta."

Listing off of his fingers, Shinso said, "First off, Mineta saved her when she was being harassed by thugs who implied they'd be physically violent towards her. Then Mineta showed respect to her by declining her sensual offer on the grounds she was worked up and her addiction she was under was impairing her judgment. THEN he asked about getting help for her, which lead to rehab to treat her drug addiction, as well as security to protect her, and also she got a job offer when her rehab's done with said job offer also giving her a home."

Izuku nodded in agreement. "Ayumu was shown, is getting, so much care. All thanks to Mineta."

"I just wish that Ashido, Hagakure, and Jiro would see that Mineta really HAS made a turn around," Yaoyorozu's voice spoke up, making the boys turn to see her. Yaoyorozu looked more or less the same as she did this time two years ago, although she now dressed far more casually in a lower class style; baggy jeans held up with a belt, baggy white t-shirt under a red plaid shirt that was open in the front, and her hair wasn't worn in a ponytail right now.

Gesturing to Yaoyorozu to join him and the others, Tenya said, "You wanna talk about it, Yaoyorozu?"

As Yaoyorozu sat down with the boys, she explained, "I'll admit that even I was a bit surprised to hear it that not only did a girl offer Mineta to have sex with him, but he turned the offer down. I mean, as much as he keeps a lid on them, Mineta STILL does have his habits that aren't exactly easy to talk about in polite company. Mineta turning that girl's offer down, and more yet getting for her the help she clearly needed, showed that Mineta has come a very long way from the kind of person he was on the first day of our first year here at UA."

"A lot of us in class have come a very long way since day one of year one," Tenya said, "I mean, Midoriya hit a growth spurt and now ties with Shoji for tallest student in our class. And Uraraka had lost a tremendous amount of the excess weight she had when she first started here."

"A lot of the guys in class," Yaoyorozu said, "Including most of the present company here, had let their hair grow out."

"Apparently it's become so common in Japan nowadays for male students to grow their hair out that social science experts are trying to research how the trend started," Tenya said.

Smirking in amusement, Shinso said, "And apparently long hair on guys triggers Endeavor, as Todoroki here learned when he first visited him at Tartarus." Arching a wry eyebrow of amusement, Shinso added, "You want Todoroki to tell you about Endeavor's reaction to the latest thing he told him during his most recent visit?"

Turning to look at Todoroki, Yaoyorozu said with a concerned look on her face, "Todoroki, why do you and your folks visit Endeavor at Tartarus?"

After chewing and swallowing a mouthful of food, Todoroki explained, "Because regardless of how much of an asshole as he had been, and regardless of what all he did before he was finally taken down, he's still my dad."

Izuku nodded once in understanding. Family is a very powerful force, a very strong connection, a very treasured bond. It can be a happy boon, like how Satsuki and Samidare treasure Tsuyu and the Urarakas. But it can also be a troubling burden, like how Todoroki and his siblings have to deal with the fact that their father had suffered a severe fall from grace. Izuku was lucky that he had no such trouble, as his mom Inko, step-dad Toshinori, and adopted little siblings Eri and Kota all love him and one another. A big happy family.

Izuku just prayed that no-one else had to go through family troubles.

The following day, Toshinori and Naomasa went to the rehab center where Ayumu was staying. On the way to the office where the two men would meet Ayumu to question her, they ran into Edgeshot, who is still the number one hero in Japan at this time. He was helping to keep an eye on things when it came to the girl who could help to make or break the Cornucopia case.

Additionally, Toshinori decided to bring along Mineta, as he got it that Ayumu is both grateful to and fond of the short grape haired boy. Mineta had asked if he could bring Ayumu a small bag of things, mostly snacks and a few personal care products. Naomasa said the folks running the rehab center would have to check everything, but the good detective personally saw no issue with it.

On the contrary, such a gesture, which Mineta was clearly making in good faith, was found to be a good idea by both Naomasa and Toshinori, as a kind gesture like that ought to make Ayumu more cooperative, more willing to share details she may be hesitant to share. The folks running the rehab center saw no issue with any of what Mineta brought, so they let it all pass.

"I was told you recently cleared an important exercise in your rehabilitation," Mineta said to Ayumu as he handed her the shopping bag of stuff, "So I got you a few small things to congratulate you for your efforts."

Ayumu seemed sincerely touched by the effort. "Some of the personal care products in here are nicer than the generic brand stuff that's provided here," Ayumu remarked, sounding happy that she can use a finer shampoo now. She looked a lot cleaner now too; Ayumu wore a clean outfit that wasn't threadbare, she had showered, and her hair was brushed out and clean. Ayumu's hair still had a bit of a wild hint to it; the guys supposed it was just naturally wild.

"Anyway, we were hoping you might be able to provide us with additional details you may remember about the time you overheard your old dealer speak with a colleague of his about work that they had or were going to do for Cornucopia," Naomasa said. He first took out a photo of the lead thug from the group that harassed Ayumu the day she was saved by Mineta. "First off, the man in this photo is your old dealer, yes?" Naomasa asked, "I'm asking just for clarification purposes."

Ayumu looked at the photo for a moment before nodding in the affirmative. "Yes, that's him."

"Alright, we already have his name of Shigure Soto," Naomasa said as he put the photo away, "Now on to business. What all can you recall from the conversation you overheard Mr. Soto have with his colleague about work they were doing for Cornucopia?"

"They were talking about a drug ring that will distribute and sell in towns outside of the big city areas of Japan," Ayumu said, "You know, those older, less technologically advanced towns that are out in the country."

Naomasa scowled bitterly. "The police have heard reports of drug dealing out in those areas. So it was Cornucopia's doing, ehh?"

"Anything else, Young Tomo?" Toshinori asked.

Thinking for a moment, Ayumu said, "I also overheard Shigure mention that the gang isn't able to field as much manpower nowadays because Cornucopia's Apocalyptic Four were killed off a while ago by Dabi's Crew, back when Dabi's Crew was still active."

Arching a wry eyebrow, Naomasa said, "Cornucopia's Company has overall lower manpower in the current times?" Mineta gulped a bit out of nervousness, having gotten it from Tsuyu and Ochaco how specifically Cornucopia's four elite thugs themed after the four horsemen of the apocalypse were wiped out. It was yet another reason why Mineta was rather wary of the sole male sibling in the Uraraka household.

Leaning back in his seat, Toshinori remarked, "So when the main efforts to bring Cornucopia down are able to be done, the pro heroes ought to have an easier time as there won't be any elite thugs to have to worry about."

"Can you remember anything else?" Naomasa asked.

"...Only that Shigure mentioned that a new facility for producing the drugs that Cornucopia's men, including Shigure, were planning to distribute and sell in the towns out in the country is located in a warehouse by the water," Ayumu said, "I have no idea where specifically as it didn't come up, but Shigure did say it was located within a reasonable driving range from his place."

"The same residency you were in when Mr. Soto had the conversation with his colleague at the front door," Naomasa asked, drawing an affirmative nod from Ayumu. Nodding once, Naomasa said, "Okay, Mr. Soto's residence in question is located near UA High School. So we're going to be looking for warehouses by the water within reasonable driving range of UA."

Toshinori nodded in understanding, glad that they were able to narrow things down for when it came to busting Cornucopia's narcotics business. After a few more topics were covered, Toshinori, Naomasa, and Mineta had to take their leave. However, before they could go, Ayumu stopped them to say one quick thing. "Hey, Minoru," Ayumu began.

Given that Ayumu was addressing him by his first name, Mineta said, "What is it, Ayumu?"

Looking a bit bashful, Ayumu as she looked down with a blush on her face said, "Thanks again. Really. What all you've done to save me, fix my life. You're literally the first person to ever show such consideration and care for me."

Nodding once, Mineta said, "It's all part of being a pr-"

"My offer that I made to you still stands, by the way," Ayumu cut in, drawing a surprised look out of Mineta, "I... the fog in my mind is clearing up, I can... I can think more clearly now. I'm still wanting to rock your world, but now it's more out of gratitude and the fact you're doing so much for me."

"We... can discuss that business once you've completed your rehab and are fully clear," Mineta said, still surprised a girl wants to bang him.

...

On the drive back to UA, Toshinori said, "It... was a bit surprising what Young Tomo said."

"About the potential drug producing facility near UA?" Naomasa asked as he drove the car while the former Symbol of Peace sat shotgun.

Gently shaking his head, Toshinori said, "No, the part at the end when Young Tomo said she was wanting to have sex with Young Mineta."

"Technically, both Tomo and Mineta are at the legal age of consent here in Japan," Naomasa said, "So there wouldn't be any violation of laws if they did do it, provided both parties have consent from each other and they do things responsibly."

"I'm actually surprised that she's still wanting to do it with me," Mineta spoke up from the backseat, "I mean, I was figuring that there'd be a ninety-one point six percent chance she'd lose interest in doing that as she was getting the help I sought to get for her."

Toshinori arched a wry eyebrow. "You were willing helping a girl who offered to have sex with you while under the impression she'd withdraw said offer at some point."

Shrugging, Mineta said, "As much as I would still very much like to turn in my v-card, there's more important things than that, right? Helping people without any expectation of receiving reward is a hallmark of being a hero, right?"

Toshinori was surprised to hear from Mineta all of that. The grape haired boy was wanting to help a girl in the situation like what Ayumu is slash was in, without any expectation of receiving any sort of reward, solely because helping someone like that is the right thing to do. Mineta was also expecting to lose out on getting the offer Ayumu made him, an offer Mineta would still very much like to take, but he's still wanting to help Ayumu because it's the right thing to do.

Mineta, at least if you asked Toshinori, has taken a step in the right direction to becoming a true hero.

Later that evening at the Class 3-A dorm building, Izuku was hanging out with Tenya, Todoroki, Shinso, Tokoyami, Ochaco, and Tsuyu. "So there's supposedly a drug production plant located within reasonable driving range of UA," Tenya said.

Izuku nodded once in confirmation. "That's what my dad told me. He said that chances are once things are confirmed, we may come along to help pro heroes round things up."

"And what your dad said about Ayumu kero," Tsuyu spoke up, "About how she said her offer to Mineta still stands, and he told her they'll talk about it after she's out of rehab and fully clear. How Mineta is fully expecting to lose out on the offer but he's still wanting to help Ayumu anyway. It has got to be what finally convinces Ashido, Hagakure, and Jiro that Mineta really has changed for the better kero."

"Just Ashido," Mineta spoke up, making Izuku's group turn to see Mineta standing there. "Yeah, she was finally convinced that I'm keeping on the straight and narrow," Mineta said, "Although it took Kirishima and the other guys in his group pointing it out for it to stick. And Hagakure and Jiro are still convinced I'm the same as I was on day one of year one."

Dark Shadow, who was out and hanging next to Tokoyami, folded his arms over his chest. "Well at least the girl who looks like she's the color of strawberry taffy has been convinced you're clean."

Shrugging, Mineta said, "I'm feeling like I'm always going to be something of a black sheep here because of my past. It's not all that surprising, given that some of the guys in my family have a bit of a history of being eternal black sheep."

Arching a wry eyebrow, Shinso asked, "What do you mean?"

"You all know how I was expelled on day one of year one, right?" Mineta began, "Yeah, my folks kicked me out of the house because of it. The only reason I didn't flounder out is because my Uncle Akoji took me in, as he similarly has been made out into a black sheep in the family."

"Your uncle is also a pervert?" Dark Shadow asked.

Gently shaking his head, Mineta replied, "Not exactly, at least I don't know. Uncle Akoji was always the black sheep among his siblings due to being a spare son. Also being the middle child out of three didn't help him either."

Gesturing to Mineta, Izuku asked, "Can you clarify?"

To the group, Mineta said, "Alright, here's how things went. My dad is the first born son and oldest of three siblings. My grandparents wanted only one son and one daughter, so after having my dad they tried for a daughter. Instead, they got Uncle Akoji. Trying again after that they got the daughter that they were wanting, my Aunt Taro. Although they were good to my dad and Aunt Taro, my grandma and grandpa put in the bare minimum with Uncle Akoji."

Scowling, Todoroki said, "So they short-changed your uncle because he was son number two and they only wanted son number one and daughter number one."

"Not helping is how my dad while a student was a star athlete, popular with the girls," Mineta said, "One of those hale and hearty big man on campus types, while Uncle Akoji was more on the thin and nerdy side. Conversely, my dad barely passed his classes while Uncle Akoji was a star student in terms of academics." With a wry look, Mineta said, "Of course, that didn't matter to my grandma and grandpa as they saw my dad as the bigger success."

Gesturing to Mineta, Shinso asked, "Where are your dad and aunt now?"

"Because my dad barely got through high school and couldn't get into post high school education," Mineta said, "The best full time work he was able to get was being a security guard. My Aunt Taro graduated high school but still lives with my grandparents. I have no idea how my dad or mom for that matter, or my Aunt Taro, or my grandparents are doing ever since they cast me out because I got expelled from UA on day one of year one."

"That's..." Ochaco said, "...That's actually pretty sad."

Briskly shaking his head, Mineta said, "Don't be sad. At least I still have Uncle Akoji, oh and by the way, the rest of the family despite casting Uncle Akoji out still have the audacity to expect him to give them full financial support. At least that's what I had heard about them the last time that Uncle Akoji said anything about them. I haven't heard anything else about the rest of my family ever since they gave me the boot."

Shrugging, Todoroki asked, "Aren't you at least a little curious as to how they're doing?"

Thinking about it for a moment, Mineta replied, "I may look into it, but it's guaranteed that Uncle Akoji by himself is much better off than the rest of them combined. I may check in on them, if only to rub some success in their faces."

It concerned Izuku to see that anyone could have so rocky of a family life. Mineta, although he did initially have some punishment coming for his early actions, not only made up for said actions, but one could make the argument that he's paid more than he should have. Izuku could only hope that Mineta will be able to repair things with his family, that they could all just bury the hatchet and once again get along.

Family can't be fractured, or at least it shouldn't be.

The next day, Izuku and his classmates had a day off campus, allowing them to visit home. For Izuku, this saw him as well as Tokoyami visit Ochaco and Tsuyu at the Uraraka mansion. In a twist that surprised Izuku, Ayumu was able to visit as well, being supervised by the Ninja Hero Edgeshot off of rehab grounds. As the formerly homeless girl was going to be trained as a live in maid who will work at Uraraka Mansion, she was brought over early for a tour.

Seeing the splendor of what Ochaco and her family called home gave Ayumu further motivation to work hard at getting clean at rehab. She was also shy and bashful as Mineta was part of the group at Uraraka Mansion as well; Ochaco knowing ahead of time that Ayumu was coming over decided to invite Mineta as well, being aware that Ayumu was developing genuine feelings for Mineta. It also gave Mineta a chance to update Izuku and some of the others.

"Yeah, my Uncle Akoji, when I asked him to, looked into how the rest of the family was doing," Mineta said to his classmates, "Surprisingly, my dad and both of my grandparents are now dead."

Izuku, as well as the others, looked surprised. "Your dad and grandparents are gone now?" Izuku asked.

Nodding once in the affirmative, Mineta explained, "According to Uncle Akoji who got it from my mom, my dad and a few others who like him were working as security guards were killed when Dabi's Crew attacked the warehouse they were working at. Uncle Akoji was able to confirm that my dad specifically was killed by Usagi, apparently because she picked him up and threw him really hard into the ground when my dad tried to restrain Nagant with a full nelson."

"So Satsuki killed your dad kero," Tsuyu said, "Must have been sometime before Satsuki and Samidare turned on Dabi and the others."

"Then when my grandparents got the news that my dad was killed, the stress of it apparently killed my grandma," Mineta said, "Then two days later my grandpa was killed when he got into a traffic accident while driving to somewhere he was going to make arrangements at for both my dad and my grandma. My mom and Aunt Taro, both of whom are still alive, are sharing a cheap apartment and are both working full time as servers at a restaurant."

"Your family, aside from your uncle whoever he is, was mean to you Minoru," Ayumu said, "As dark as it may sound, it seems like karma hit them hard for booting you out because you were kicked out of school."

"To... be fair," Mineta began, "I was booted from school for lewd behavior."

Shrugging, Ayumu said, "Minoru, you're talking to a girl who used to be a sex worker to earn money. I think it's safe to say that I'm far more of a pervert than you."

"Just please refrain from talking about that stuff around my younger siblings," Tsuyu said.

Nodding in agreement, Ochaco added, "Yeah, Tsuyu has a point. We don't need you guys talking about stuff of a lewd nature around Satsuki and Samidare."

"Speaking of," Edgeshot spoke up, "I believe that Miss Tomo here ought to meet Usagi and Felgrand. As she'll be trained as a live in maid working for the Uraraka family, Miss Tomo ought to be made familiar with the folks she'll be working for." Tsuyu and Ochaco both agreed with Edgeshot's point, thus they went to find Satsuki and Samidare.

...

Izuku and his group eventually found Samidare and Satsuki in Mr. Uraraka's home office. "Satsuki wanted to see if there were candies in the dish on dad's desk in his office," Samidare explained to the others when they found him and Satsuki in Mr. Uraraka's home office.

Gesturing to Ayumu who was looking at something in the office, Tsuyu said, "We can discuss that later. Now then, Samidare, Satsuki, this is Ayumu Tomo. She's... had a bit of a rough life, but she is getting help now, partly in thanks to our parents covering the costs, but also partly in thanks to my classmate Mineta who had pushed for it."

Samidare turned to look at Mineta. "Tsuyu and Ochaco say that you are good now, have been saying that for a while," Samidare said, "If they say it's true, then I'll believe it."

"Heh heh, thanks," Mineta replied, still a little nervous because Samidare who was in front of him, despite not being transformed or showing any hostility, is STILL Felgrand the Dragon of Destruction.

Nodding once, Samidare went on, "Tsuyu and Ochaco also said that... hmm?" Samidare stopped short when, as he turned to look at Ayumu, he saw that she was focusing on something that was in the office. "...Is something the matter, Ayumu Tomo?" Samidare asked.

Pointing at what she was looking at, Ayumu said, "Oh, it's that thing in the corner. I remember seeing another one of those before, I just can't remember what it's called." Everyone in the office turned to look at what Ayumu was pointing at, and it was the kanabo Samidare brought over to and left in the office in case the pro heroes needed to come by and collect it as evidence in the Cornucopia case and Samidare isn't home to get it from his bedroom where it was previously kept.

"Oh, that's a kanabo," Izuku said, "It's potential evidence in the Cornucopia case. It was brought here to be kept if the pro heroes need to come by and collect it."

"Ah, so it's called a kanabo," Ayumu said, "Sorry, it's just that I remember seeing one before, in the possession of a guy with long light pastel blue hair."

Edgeshot's one visible eye widened a bit out of surprise. "...The late Ryumaru Okami, who used a kanabo, was one of Cornucopia's elite thugs. Ryumaru had long light pastel blue hair."

"Can you describe how else the guy you saw with a kanabo looked like?" Izuku asked. Nodding once, Ayumu proceeded to describe the guy she saw in the past with a kanabo; already listing what his hair looked like, Ayumu described the guy as being slender but with a light amount of toned muscle, he wore a dark forest green, sleeveless haori long coat, baggy jeans held up with a belt, and at the time he was barefoot.

Samidare looked mildly surprised when he heard the description. "The details that she gave just now match the description of the guy I killed and looted that kanabo from," Samidare said.

Looking to Ayumu, Edgeshot asked, "Can you tell us, later in an official interview, what all you told us here, as well as where you remember seeing the late Ryumaru?" Ayumu nodded in agreement, then Edgeshot said he was going to have to report this. The Ninja Hero also said that Ryumaru's kanabo was going to have to be collected as evidence after all, to which Samidare nodded in understanding as he said that it's why he made it available for the pro heroes to collect.

Ayumu, as she looked at Ryumaru's kanabo, said something she remembered seeing and hearing, something that made the others present very excited.

...

Toshinori and his wife Inko were having lunch out with Naomasa, just a casual lunch between friends. "Well I'm glad to hear that your adopted children are both doing well," Naomasa said.

"Oh they're simply wonderful," Inko said, "And it's downright adorable how Eri has the cutest little crush on the younger brother of Izuku's classmate Asui."

"I... was caught a bit off guard when Eri told Inko and I how she wants to marry Young Samidare," Toshinori remarked.

Chuckling a bit, Naomasa said, "Toshi, that's just something girls that age are known to do, saying they wanna marry a boy that they have a crush on. It's nothing to worry abo-"

*ring ring* *ring ring*

Naomasa was cut off when his phone went off. Answering it, Naomasa said, "Hello? What's go- are you serious?!" Toshinori and Inko looked on as Naomasa heard what the call was talking about. "I'll be right over," Naomasa said as he ended the call. Looking to Toshinori and Inko, Naomasa said, "We're going to have to pick this up later. New details in the Cornucopia case have just cropped up."

Looking like something was up, Toshinori said, "Sounds like a serious deal." Naomasa nodded in agreement, although what he said next caught the former Symbol of Peace off guard.

"It is a serious deal, given said details include visual identification of Cornucopia himself."

END, CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT

Author's notes;

This chapter begins with a discussion on how longer hair is now more popular among the guys before Yaoyorozu joins Izuku and some of his friends to complain about how some of the girls still won't cut Mineta a break, even though he is proving his turn around by refusing to take advantage of Ayumu Tomo despite how she made offers to him.

Ayumu later provides details on a warehouse where Cornucopia's Company is making narcotics that they're selling, including in areas out in the country. Mineta still helps with Ayumu, despite how he is fully expecting to lose out on getting what Ayumu offered him, because he's acting in a way that he feels is the right way to act.

When this info gets out, Mina joins the girls who are convinced that he has changed his ways for the better. Mineta also describes his family life, how his Uncle Akoji was the black sheep solely because he was a second born son, and being cast out from the family is what led to Akoji taking in Mineta. He later gets it that karma hit his family hard.

Later, during a tour of Uraraka Mansion, Ayumu sees Ryumaru's kanabo and identifies it as well as Ryumaru's description which Samidare confirms. It later turned out that seeing the kanabo sparked Ayumu's memory in a way that reminded her of a time she saw Cornucopia himself. Things will be continuing from here in the next chapter.