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Migila: In Izuku's eyes he wouldn't be much better..

Psy-Kick:Thanks.

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Proofread by 3DPhantom

Chapter 65: Monsters Meet

Stain crouched on a rooftop alone, hiding amongst some air conditioning units. People rarely looked up, but the sun was still only going down. Being out like this was dangerous. He probably should not have done it, but he would not have time at night. He should have ignored that kid's insistent requests. After spending several nights with him it was clear the masked Shigaraki, despite his surprising skill, was a kid in his late teens at most.

Which was why Stain himself was confused why he had agreed to the kid's request or spent his time on the kid. He gave Stain a rare training opportunity and had put up a better fight than the killer was willing to admit. If he utilized all the unknow quirks he somehow possessed, the kid might have been a true threat even to the killer of pro heroes, but did he really have a conviction worthy of spending time on?

When the kid stood in his way and spoke about sparing the fakes to expose them, even questioning Stain's judgement on their worth, Stain could not judge him as anything but naïve. Yet his insistence on correcting society without clear personal gain, and apparent unwillingness to risk making anyone but the worst suffer, was something special. If he had pursued the path of a hero, he might have become a real one, if the world did not kill his naïveté first.

Yet he had chosen to be associated with this League of Villains. Perhaps this meeting would give some answers to that question. That might make this somewhat worthwhile.

Stain's instincts honed by blood flared. He spun around, holding up a katana, only to face one of those dark portals that looked like black mist spinning around. The creature, because that was not just a person with a quirk, responsible for it materialized next to the portal. For some reason he was always dressed like a bartender.

As Stain stepped through the portal, he got an answer to that mystery, at least as he arrived in some kind of private bar and the misty creep moved behind the bar counter. He wasn't the main creep in the room though. Seeing Tomura Shigaraki in person and meeting his stare only reinforced Stain's expectations.

"So, you are the famous Stain who has everyone talking about him after killing a couple of random heroes," Shigaraki said with a sneer.

"And you are Tomura the lesser Shigaraki," Stain responded without changing his facial expression, not even when he saw barely contained rage boiling in Shigaraki's eyes while he did his best to scratch the skin of his neck away.

"So what do you want from me?" Stain asked. "Talk quickly. I don't feel like wasting much time on you."

…

Toshinori Yagi, also known as the number one hero All Might, stepped into a room at the school where his visitor was already waiting. The man slightly shorter than Toshinori even in his small form was just putting away his long beige jacket and hat that made him look as stereotypical-detective as possible.

"Good to see you Tsukauchi," Toshinori greeted and placed a cup of tea on the table for his friend before they both sat down.

"I'm sorry to show up unexpectedly. Hope you don't mind."

"Please. It is always a pleasure to see you Tsukauchi. So, how's the investigation, or I should probably say the investigations?"

"Yes, I just hope they are not connected," Tsukauchi responded. Both their stares tensed. "There were a number of villains that attacked USJ, but there is one we are puzzled by, the one you fought that escaped, the one called Nomu."

"Ah, that strong bird guy."

"Yes, thankfully we got some samples before it was freed by the unknown villain. We ran some tests on the Nomu's DNA."

"What exactly did you find?"

"First, we are not asking you to help us with the case," Tsukauchi noted. "Technically this is a leak. I just felt I owed it to you to let you know. It could lead us to the one in charge."

Tsukauchi hesitated for a few seconds, unintentionally raising the tension of the moment. He nodded his understanding, so the investigator continued.

"After several attempts at interrogation we realized that the Nomu can't speak. It shows no reaction to anything. It's as though he literally can't think for himself, no matter what's going on around him. As for his identity, we discovered that he used to be a low-level thug with a record of assault and extortion."

"Why do you think this will lead us to the mastermind behind the league?"

"Here's where it gets interesting and unfortunately not for the first time in this manner. Our reports show that he has been altered drastically. When we analyzed his genetic makeup, we discovered four different people's DNA."

Toshinori held his fist against his chin in thought.

"Somebody made this guy? Is it even human anymore?"

"The transformation is a result of drugs and other unknown methods. To oversimplify a bit, he's been modified so that his body is able to hold multiple quirks at once. His brain's apparent lack of processing power probably comes from the burden that causes, but we are more concerned about his DNA. He shouldn't have more than one power. Even if new DNA is introduced, that shouldn't give a person multiple powers, not unless it is completely integrated into someone's genome, if even then."

Tsukauchi paused while a new pressure started squeezing Toshinori's throat and remaining lung.

"Not all quirks work like One For All, but maybe there is someone out there with a power to pass different quirks onto other people. Sound familiar?"

Toshinori bounced up on his feet.

"It can't be."

"Given the evidence, I think it is a reasonable conclusion. Which is why I came. I had to let you know immediately," Tsukauchi paused for a moment. "There are only two people we have ever known to live that fit the description. Midoriya is too young and, as far as we know, has had his quirk too short of a time to have developed something like this."

Toshinori stepped in front of the window, looking at the sundown as he grew into All Might.

"No, it is not possible. Don't' tell me he is back again."

"Given that the man who released the Nomu also appeared to have multiple quirks, I would be surprised if you had not already considered it a possibility, unless you share Death Arm's view on the matter."

All Might shook his head and held his face in frustration.

"Tell me you have found something about him, the masked man."

"Not much. In our investigation of USJ and interrogations of villains captured, there were several mentions of a masked man dressed in black… who sometimes was with Tomura Shigaraki, in case his involvement with the league was in doubt. We did get a name though, Shirokuro, Shirokuro Shigaraki. He is, they at least think he is, the brother of Tomura Shigaraki."

"And he has multiple quirks."

"Based on the hospital attack yes, but you are the one who was there. He also appears to have maintained his human form and mental faculties despite that fact. Those who met him considered him more intelligent, or at least more stable than Tomura, but his presence seems to have been very limited. Also, no one has seen his face. Some of my colleagues think he also has some modifications like the Nomu."

"You don't sound convinced?"

Tsukauchi shrugged.

"It is a possibility, but that's all it is. I don't like to speculate on such flimsy basis. It is not so unusual for villains to hide their face that we'd need such explanation. I am more worried for what his existence means. The Nomu was massively powerful, but completely dependent on others to control it. If the league can give a person multiple quirks without the side effects that it suffered…"

"We already know they can if he is behind them. Young Midoriya has proven it is possible to give someone at least a second quirk without significant consequences. Even more might be possible depending on person and the quirks. If our enemies can also tamper with people's DNA, there is no telling what they could do."

"Yes… he is the other question," Tsukauchi muttered. All Might knew what he meant.

"Have… have you found out anything more about him?" He asked the detective.

"Not really. Only suspicious thing is how hard it is to find out about his father. Despite everything that has happened I have never seen the man. To be honest, since I didn't detect any lies talking to him and with everything else on my desk, I haven't seriously investigated him for a while now. Legally speaking, continuing it would be questionable anyway. The kid might be extremely dangerous if you poke the wrong person, enough to be a concern, but he has not done anything truly wrong."

"True."

"Also, he is already hostile to us, you especially. Now that is even more of a problem. If our enemy really is All For One, the kid could be our greatest trump card, especially considering your condition."

Tsukauchi fell quiet for a moment, grimacing before he continued.

"I hate to ask, but have you considered the question of your successor recently?"

"I have," All Might responded and shrunk back into Toshinori. "There are a couple of options. The principal has his recommendation, and I was already thinking about choosing him, but ever since I started teaching I have gotten a new view on the potential of the younger generation."

"Wasn't that the whole point?"

"Yes, but now I have more than one candidate, even more than one that can bring joy and a smile to people even in crisis." Toshinori held his head. "Before I did not have any candidates I could consider, so it was a relief when I found someone who seemed to be a great choice, but I hesitated giving up One For All. Now I have very promising people practically falling on my lap and I cannot choose. What if I make the wrong choice?"

"It is a big decision. With One For All's power you are basically choosing the next Symbol of Peace, assuming you choose well."

"I have fought crime for decades, but this choice is the single heaviest burden I have carried." Toshinori huffed and smiled. "I guess young Midoriya managed to cause me problems even when he decided to tolerate me.

"Why do you say that?" Tsukauchi raised one eyebrow.

"I… He has strong opinions, of both myself and many heroes in general, so I asked what he thinks a real hero is, or more exactly who. I was hoping it would make him consider his views and standards from a new point of view, maybe start softening his harshest opinions, but he only gave me more to think about."

"Like?"

"Like there is a difference between 'I am here' and 'everything will be okay'."

"O-kay?" Tsukauchi stretched the word clearly confused. "Anything else?"

Toshinori thought about it for a moment.

"Sorry," he eventually said, "I know you already have your hands full, but before I can choose, I need to know everything possible about one other person, discreetly."

"Investigation of concerning individual, or background check before making someone the number one hero?"

"The latter, maybe. I don't know yet."

…

Izuku's phone rang with the alarm he had set to make sure he would wake up from his forced nap. For a few seconds he was groggy, like a sleep deprived person forced to wake far too early as he reached for the phone, but then the Sleep Deprived caught up.

He picked up the phone and renamed the chat Hitoshi had renamed to 'Izu's nappy time'. Now it was 'Just wait for the weekend' as a warning to the brainwasher. Perhaps Gran Torino would know some exercises Izuku had not thought of yet.

"Good morning!" Eijiro soon sent a message, and unlike with Hitoshi there was no doubt about how genuine the greeting was.

"I want to see the miracle maker that actually convinced him to sleep," Hitoshi added after Izuku got up and started putting his costume on.

"I'm not that bad." Izuku responded.

"How many full nights have you slept after getting that quirk?"

Izuku put the phone aside to finish dressing. That was a discussion he would not win, and he had watched enough movies, especially in the past months, to know that sometimes the only winning move was to not play. He only looked at the discussion again once he left the room and Hitoshi had given up on getting a response.

"Have you already seen the video that's been in the news the whole day?" Hitoshi asked.

"Yes, such darkness of the soul," Tokoyami even wrote as he spoke.

Izuku frowned a little, thinking several times about what to write. He had a lot to say, but much of it was Shirokuro's words, or at least things that were too tied to Shirokuro.

"It can't be true, can it? That's SO not manly, especially for a hero." Eijiro was still quite naïve. Then again, he was too good for this dark world anyway. Izuku finally typed a short response.

"I'm not surprised."

"Really?" Eijiro asked. "I mean I know you can be pessimistic about how things are but…"

He never finished the sentence before sending the message. The little picture, half of it red, and text at the bottom of the screen just said 'Red Riot is writing…'

"With so many protections and privileges for heroes, stuff like that is inevitable as long as they think they won't get caught or held responsible," Izuku responded, "and no one is even seriously trying to filter them out. Remember how egomaniacal almost-murderer got into UA?"

"I guess you are right. I heard some heroes talking about it. They sounded more worried about how people reacted to what he has done than what he did."

Perhaps not as naïve as Izuku feared.

"That's how they get away with it," Izuku responded. "I would be careful if you meet heroes from his agency."

"I think I already did. They are the ones I met. Still, it is hard to believe. How could he? Heroes are supposed to save people, not, what he did."

There was a short break between messages.

"Could it be fake?"

As much as Izuku wanted to confirm everything, he had to send Shirokuro to sit in the corner and shut up.

"Could be, but some news titles said there was more than just the video."

"You mean the records about his arrests from some hero sites that alleged things happened after being arrested?"

"And apparently several of them are doing it again now," Izuku added. Hitoshi was already writing by the time he sent the message.

"Some people must be as nerdy about heroes as you are about quirks to keep up those sites. Ever thought about replacing notebooks with a website?"

Count on Hitoshi to ease the tension. Izuku typed a quick snarky response.

"I'll put you on the front page if I do."

"Another sales pitch? Wasn't the sports festival enough? Not that I have reason to complain."

Even though Izuku's eyes were on the screen, his ears were still working. He ducked at the last fraction of a second so a wrinkled hand flew past empty air where his head had been. Gran Torino bounced off a wall and landed in front of Izuku, who barely stopped himself from launching a counterattack.

"Have to say, never met someone as vigilant," the old man said, "especially from your generation. Usually people with their faces on screens wouldn't notice if I parked a car right in front of them."

"Those people would not reach your age if they tried to be heroes, at least real ones," Izuku muttered while reading the messages.

"Can you add me on there too?" Eijiro asked.

"Didn't he already make a sales pitch of you to A** M****?"

At least the censoring Izuku had added to his chat worked.

"Oh yeah, maybe not that much."

"Yes, that much at least," Izuku wrote, "but I'm not starting a website. I want to choose who gets my notes."

"Dark Shadow wants to know what you have written about him."

"Living room, third shelf from the floor, the one with a black back and a picture of black Raven on the cover."

"You already have individual notebooks for each of us?" Hitoshi asked.

"Had to sort out notes from other notebooks. Yours is the one with a purple back and a picture of a sleepy puppeteer holding strings."

"Sure. Do you have one for yourself? What does it look like?" Hitoshi asked.

There were two actually: One black, one white. Neither were on the living room shelves.

"Ahem," Gran Torino coughed. Izuku did not mind.

"Gtg ttyl."

Izuku put the phone away.

"Finally. Got your attention now?"

"For now," Izuku responded.

"Fine, it is time you get some of that real experience. We are going out to fight some villains," Gran Torino turned and started heading to the door. "I've already called a taxi to head to the station."

"Station?"

"It won't do us any good hanging around here. Because of the small population in this area the crime rate is pretty low. That's why there are so many hero agencies in urban areas. There is a lot more crime there."

They got into the waiting car.

"The higher the population density the more trouble you'll find. In Shibuya you'll have a bunch of small fights to break up, I guarantee."

Izuku brushed his chin, staring at the backrest of the driver's seat.

"We are going to Shibuya in Tokyo. Are we going to take the bullet train towards Shinjuku?"

"Yep."

"So we are passing Hosu city," Izuku muttered and finally turned to face the old man. "Wouldn't it make more sense to stop there? It is plenty urban, and we wouldn't need to spend so much traveling."

Gran Torino looked at him for several seconds, long enough to understand he had seen past Izuku's excuses. The old man frowned, confirming that.

"Why are you so interested in Hosu?"

"I just told you."

"No, I don't think so. As for why; Hosu is where the Hero Killer just struck twice."

Izuku must have shown something on his face because Gran Torino's frown deepened.

"Don't tell me you were thinking about him?" He accused. Izuku grimaced.

"No, not directly. I have… a classmate who is interning with Manual in Hosu. I…"

"You are worried," Gran Torino interrupted. "Don't try to pretend. It has been obvious from the beginning."

"So…"

"He is with pros, and his safety is not your responsibility." Izuku begged to differ, but remained silent. "Yours is mine. Also, with increased hero presence looking for the killer there are less opportunities to deal with small-time crime. We are going to Shibuya."

Izuku frowned and might have given an angrier stare than was smart.

"No complaints or I will take away your phone."

Izuku turned away, resisting the urge to huff or comment how he'd like to see the old man try. Shirokuro could have kept a better eye on Tenya at this point, but here he was. He opened his chat again.

"Going to be in Shibuya looking for trouble tonight."

"Don't hurt the criminals too much!" Hitoshi wrote almost instantly.

"I'll try my best."

'Hitoshi is writing…'

"Don't even think about it." Izuku commanded.

"Do or do not, there is no try." He did think about it.

"Thunder talked about that today, not hurting villains too much." Shoto commented for the first time in a long while. Izuku could practically hear the quiet monotone voice in the words. Unfortunately that did not tell him enough about how the other was doing.

"That's good."

"It reminded me of how bad fire can be."

So maybe not that good. Izuku had his work cut out for him. He rubbed his forehead and might have sighed too loudly.

"I'm not going to change my mind," Gran Torino remarked.

"It's not that. This is… You saw the end of the Sports Festival with Shoto… Todoroki, and Endeavour?"

"Whose son you effectively kidnapped."

"Saved. Endeavour is worse than All Might," Izuku paused briefly. "Do you have any… any experience in dealing with trauma, mental trauma specifically?"

Gran Torino leaned his head on his cane with a more serious stare on his face.

"Mostly from having trauma. It is part of the job, especially if you go after the big fish or serious accidents."

"What if the fish was your father?"

"I see what you are getting at. What does he want? The boy, I mean."

"Shoto," Izuku corrected, "he…"

Izuku hesitated before continuing. Talking about this to an outsider felt wrong, but what if the old man had experience that could help Shoto?

"He… he's scared. He might look confident and arrogant or seem cold when he gets his act on, but as soon as it breaks, if anyone even mentions Endeavour, he… well, he has had issues with controlling his quirk, and there have been several times when he basically tried to hide behind Eijiro, the…"

"The redhead with thick skin, my memory isn't that bad. Does he do the same with you?"

"Yes," Izuku tilted his head back and forth, "if I'm not going towards whoever made him afraid."

"So, proactive approach, or aggressive," Gran Torino muttered. "Whatever you have done you have clearly earned his trust, same with your friend. That is the most important part to help someone with trauma. Don't break that trust or he might sink even deeper into whatever he is stuck in."

Izuku's face twitched and he looked out of the window before exposing any feelings he shouldn't. Break their trust…

How long could he keep his charade up?

He closed his eyes. It was better to focus on what was right in front of him now. Shoto was okay, just a regular internship in a less known agency. As for Tenya… If Stain was going to strike, his target would not be Manual, most likely, and he would wait to get his target alone, probably, and Shibuya was at least closer. Perhaps getting a shot at some smaller-time criminals was just the stress relief Izuku needed.

At that moment every thug, thief and troublemaker in Shibuya had a cold shiver run through them.

…

"So you want me to be a part of your grumbling little league," Stain said, "but you won't accomplish anything if you don't have conviction and desire. Without those you will always be an aimless weakling achieving nothing, even more so than the other Shigaraki. That's how you got here."

He was holding a blade in each hand, one of them piercing the shoulder of Tomura Shigaraki as he crouched over the creep he had brought to the ground.

"Hey now, you are being a little rough aren't you," Tomura Shigaraki said from behind the hand placed on the creep's face. "Kurogiri, take this guy back."

He was truly thinking he could decide if Stain left.

"I'm sorry, I can't move," the misty creep said, pain apparent in his voice. "It is the hero killer's quirk at work. I am sorry. Even knowing about it I was too slow. Young Shigaraki will be angry."

"Well at least there is that," Tomura Shigaraki muttered, sounding almost satisfied, like he did not have a sword in his shoulder and serial killer crouched over him.

"The word hero has lost all meaning in this society," Stain declared. Whether they lived or died here they would know his conviction. "The world is overrun by fakes and criminals like you who chase petty dreams. They must all be purged."

That hand on the creep Shigaraki's face started annoying Stain as he stared at Tomura Shigaraki, so he brought his free sword to swipe it away so he could see his potential prey. What to do with this Shigaraki? Stain felt no interest, not even the little he had for the other Shigaraki, for the training opportunity he offered.

Tomura Shigaraki's hand suddenly moved, faster than Stain expected based on their initial confrontation. It grabbed the actual blade of the sword.

"What do you think you are doing? If you touch this palm," the metal around his fingers cracked, "I'll kill you."

The metal continued cracking and shedding its surface in the creep's grasp. Stain had gotten careless and tensed as he met Tomura Shigaraki's stare behind the blade, but he did not fear or show surprise. He had heard about Tomura Shigaraki's quirk having something to do with touch, and if he had learned one thing from the other Shigaraki it was to always expect surprise quirks, especially with this lot.

"You sure talk a lot, hero killer. Conviction… Maybe I don't have anything as loaded as that. If I had to choose a desire though, yeah, it would be killing All Might. If this world wants to worship trash like him, I'll destroy their beloved Symbol of Peace and then crush them while they are in shock."

The blade of the sword was lost and Tomura Shigaraki swung his hand at Stain. The attack was easy to avoid but in doing so Stain had to jump away from him, allowing the creep to get back up.

"The last of my injuries were finally about to finish healing, and now this." He held his wounded arm in front of him, though despite his complaints the injury and pain did not seem to hold him back.

The injury also did not heal as Stain had suspected it might. That was useful to know.

"You should learn to not play with knives." The other was compulsively scratching his neck. "We don't have a healer in our party you know."

"I see your nature. It seems our goals fundamentally oppose each other. However, this wasn't in vain. We both agree that we need to destroy the present, or we three, all in different ways."

The stare in Tomura Shigaraki's visible eye changed suddenly, and the scratching intensified.

"I'm over this, leave," he said in a frustrated but now far less commanding and arrogant tone. "Drop dead. I'm the kind of person you hate most, right?"

"I was testing your motives," Stain said, putting his remaining blade away. "People always show their true colours when on the verge of death. It is abnormal, but there is desire, a warped shroud of conviction inside of you. How will it plume in the end, I wonder."

Stain thought for a moment, speaking the next words in a lower muttering.

"One has clear conviction, but is held back from doing what is necessary. The other lacks direction, but may do anything for his desires."

Stain smirked and held his arms open, seemingly open and vulnerable to attack. Seemingly.

"Maybe I let you grow. See which Shigaraki has a stronger conviction." Tomura Shigaraki's stare hardened again, if that was even possible. He seemed to care more about the comparison between the two Shigarakis than his so-called desire. Perhaps he truly cared about nothing but himself. If that was the case…

"If you don't turn out well, I'll take care of you later."

"You think you could get rid of me," Tomura Shigaraki said, the arrogance returning, as the misty creep was freed from Stain's quirk. "Kurogiri, someone as crazy as this would be nothing but a problem for the League of Villains."

"Please reconsider. This man will be a great asset if he joins us. I'd say this was a success."

"My business here is done. Now you will return me to Hosu. There are still several false heroes for me to attend to there," Stain said and licked his lip. He still had the taste of the misty creep's blood in his mouth. He had never tasted blood like that. The misty creep moved away from behind the bar counter, stepping between Stain and Tomura Shigaraki. A new large warp gate opened between them. Stain stopped and tilted his head to give the misty creep a stare.

"How do I know this leads to where it is supposed to and not somewhere high in the air or in a cell?"

"I was instructed to send you back, not to send you to your death."

"And you weren't given other instructions before?"

"No."

Stain thought for a moment and looked at Tomura Shigaraki.

"You first."

The creep stared at Stain, thinking about killing him, but then the stare changed as if he had thought of something.

"Fine, if it gets you out of here."

Tomura Shigaraki stepped into the mist and Stain followed immediately to make sure the misty creep could not change the destination. They arrived safely on the same rooftop the misty creep had met him earlier, on top of a water container to be exact. Stain crouched on the edge.

"Hosu city looks nicer than I expected. So, what are you going to do?"

"I will reform it. In order to do so, blood must spill."

"You have a clear goal. Your dedication is admirable," the misty creep said.

"Finally someone who understands," Stain muttered.

"We have understood for a long time. Young Shigaraki took great interest in what drives you. Even if the path you believe to lead to the end you seek is not as clear as you think."

"Do not try to convince me to abandon my conviction."

"You should follow the news."

"Kurogiri, be quiet," Tomura Shigaraki barked. For once Stain agreed with him.

"I do not care about anyone in the 'news'. Hero is a title for those who have accomplished great deeds without personal gain, nothing less. This city is full of false champions. All they care about is money and fame. Until this world realizes its mistakes, I will continue my work."

Stain had had enough of talking. He drew his blade and jumped down from the water container. The sun was already behind the horizon and tonight Stain was going to hunt.

He glanced back at Tomura Shigaraki looking down at him from the top of the tank. The creep was planning something.

After Stain was out of sight, he pulled out a phone and turned it on for the first time for the day. He did his share of research to catch his prey, but the last day before striking was dedicated to training and preparing for the hunt. There was indeed much more talk about the fake he had purged last than with those that came before. There was a true media circus going on like he had never caused.

Stain huffed and turned the phone off again. He had his duty to take care of that he had to focus on.