Case file #20: Midoriya Inko

"Dear N *%...

She's beautiful…. Just like you….

But did you really have to pass on that part of the genetics to both of them?!"

"..." Izuku kept nervously switching glances between his book and his mentor.

"..." Chiyo didn't bat her eyes away from Izuku while sipping her tea, despite noticing his awkwardness of being studied like a hawk.

"Okay, yep. That's it." Izuku slammed his book shut, making Chiyo jolted from the sudden noise, almost spitting out her tea. "Shuzenji-sensei, what's going on?"

"Wha…. What do you mean?" Chiyo coughed out her question as she wiped the tea stain on her shirt.

"It's been going on for a week now." Izuku rubbed his eyes tiredly. "You've been avoiding me since Tuesday. Every time I strike up a conversation, you just answer non-committedly to end it. It still would've been normal if I don't find you glaring at me when you think I'm not looking. And it's not just you! Yagi-san, Torino-san- hell on Earth, even Principal Nezu keeps inviting me to his office for tea! What is this, some kind of weird way you guys came up to ease me into being expelled?!"

"What- Heavens, no!" Chiyo shouted out to clarify. "Did someone threaten to expel you?! Is it Aizawa?! I always know that hobo-looking man will finally cross a line! Hold up, I'm going to call Nezu-"

"No, he didn't! No one did! That's why this whole thing is getting confusing!" Izuku assured her. "Is this something you can tell me?"

"... Might as well rip this band-aid off." Chiyo sighed. She then pulled her chair closer to Izuku. Sitting face-to-face with him, Chiyo looked into Izuku's eyes. The viridian was a mismatch to Nana's purple.

But the way they shone….

Those, she could never forget.

"Mido- Izuku." Chiyo corrected. "Your mother's old last name; was it Shimura?"

"No. It's Akatani." Izuku gave a confusing answer. "Shuzenji-sensei, where are you going with-"

"Let me phrase it better." Chiyo didn't let Izuku continue. "Before it was Akatani…."

"I'm home-"

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY!"

Himiko's greeting was cut off by two loud shouts. As the light was turned on, she saw Izuku, Ibara and Inko, with scone hats and a cheeky, satisfied grin as they witnessed her shell-shocked reaction.

"Ooh~, she's lost for words!" Inko giggled. "It'd say it's a resounding success!"

"Indeed, Midoriya-san." Ibara nodded in agreement. "I'll head inside first and prepare the table."

"Let me help!"

With that, Ibara and Inko went together into the kitchen, leaving Izuku and Himiko alone in the hallway. Himiko watched in silence as Izuku walked closer to close the door behind her before picking the bag that she dropped on the floor. He showed her a smile as he grabbed onto her hand.

"So, do you like it?"

"It was- That's not the point!" Himiko shook herself off the surprise. "You didn't say anything about this!"

"That's the point of a surprise, Himiko-san." Izuku grinned. "It's your fault for letting your birthday slip in front of mom."

"She's a detective!" Himiko argued. "She took my statement when I dragged you home!"

"That's an unfortunate/ fortunate coincidence, I suppose." Izuku shrugged. "But if you're not comfortable with this, I'll tell mom to sto-"

Izuku didn't get a chance to finish as Himiko tackled him onto the ground and hugged him tight.

"I guess this means you like it?" Izuku patted her head.

Himiko nodded.

"Then we're going to light a firework next year to celebrate!" Izuku declared.

"That's against the law."

"What are you, the second detective of this house?"

"... was it Shimura?"

Izuku blinked a few times as if that would somehow explain the question.

"Shimura, as in-"

"Shimura as in Shimura Inko, daughter of Shimura Nana, All Might's mentor." Chiyo confirmed. "The Seventh Holder of [One for All]."

Chiyo took a deep breath.

"The grandmother that you never met."

"... Inko-san?" Himiko called.

Inko turned around from the sink, setting the plates back into it before turning off the tap.

"What's up, Himiko-chan?" Inko smiled.

"I…. I don't know what to say…." Himiko avoided Inko's gentle eyes, instead looking at the table. "All this…. This second chance you gave me…. Despite me being a monst-"

Hmiko didn't get a chance to finish as two pieces of meatball flew into her mouth. She looked up at Inko in surprise.

"Izuku hasn't 'brainwashed' you enough, I see." Inko joked with a soft, gentle smile. "Your Quirk doesn't define who you are, Himiko. What you do, does."

"But I- I-" Himiko swallowed the meatballs. "I attacked Izuku! Your only son! And yet, you still took me in and cared so much for me! Izuku, too!"

"Oh, believe me when I said I was about to pull your eyes out of their sockets when I saw you holding my bleeding son in front of my doorstep." Inko giggled, making Himiko shivered in a type of fear she didn't know was possible. "But Izuku was snoring, so."

"S- Snoring?" Himiko stuttered.

"Right, you've never been with him long enough." Inko chuckled. "Izuku sleeps a lot. Like, a lot a lot. But he will wake up at the absolute smallest sound that is made around him. He's only sleep-snoring when he's near someone he can trust. He trusted you then, so did I."

Himiko turned her head towards Izuku's room where she heard excited, although a little salty, screaming noises from Izuku and Ibara.

"They must be playing Mario Kart again…." Inko mumbled under her breath before an imaginary light bulb popped up in her head. "Himiko-chan, is there anything you want for your birthday? I focused so much on the party I actually forgot about the gift! So, tomorrow, you and me, mall all day. Anything you want!"

"It- It's alright, Inko-san." Himiko waved at her in a panic. "You've already done so much! I can't ask for mor-"

"I've waited so long for someone else with a normal fashion sense to go shopping with me, Himiko-chan!" Inko went over to bring Himiko into a hug. "Please~?"

Himiko giggled in delight as Inko gently swayed her in the bear hug.

"You're saying my mother knows you." Izuku pointed at Chiyo.

"When she was a child, yes." Chiyo nodded.

"And Torino-san."

"Unfortunately."

"And Principal Nezu."

"He's her favorite uncle. Then again, he has the physical appearance of a plushie."

"And her 'blood' mother- my 'blood' grandmother is actually Shimura Nana."

Chiyo nodded.

"The Seventh Holder of [One for All], the Quirk that I am a candidate for inheritance."

"After this revelation, I'm pretty sure it's already yours."

Izuku only nodded in response. He then slowly walked over and grabbed a water bottle, looked at it for a while before looking out of the window.

And then he looked back at the water bottle.

And then he looked out of the window.

Chiyo watched as Izuku repeated the actions for another 10 minutes before he finally opened the water bottle cap.

"So- So-" He turned around with the opened water bottle. "Did you know, when you took me in under you?"

"No, I didn't." Chiyo assured him. "Nezu and I didn't believe such coincidences were real enough to have happened. Hell, I didn't even believe it when I saw your mother at the hospital."

"Did- Did she know?"

"I didn't- haven't talked to her." Chiyo sighed sadly. "But she knew I was taking you in. If she didn't talk to me then, I doubt that she would want to talk to me now. Or any of us, as a matter of fact."

"Uh huh, uh huh." Izuku put the cap into his mouth and chewed on the plastic before spitting it out immediately when he realized what it was. "Then- Then how did you find out?"

"Nezu was looking into the past users of [One for All] when he found out something…. terrible." Izuku could notice Chiyo slightly choking on her words before she regained her composure. "Koutaro's- Inko's brother, your uncle- family was found dead 17 years ago. Immediately, he went straight to looking for Inko's whereabout and found out-"

"That Inko was actually my mother, Midoriya Inko." Izuku finished her sentence tiredly after gulping down the entire bottle. "Holy coincidences, Batman…."

"Listen, I know this must be hard on you, Midori- Izuku." Chiyo put a hand on his shoulder. "Take all the time you need, alright? But just know that I took you in because I recognized your talent and potential, not because of who your mother and grandmother were to me."

"Thank you, Shuzenji-sensei." Izuku mumbled. "I- I suppose I need to have a talk with my mother. Can- Should- May I go home early today?"

"Of course, dearie." Chiyo nodded. Izuku gave her an appreciative bow before grabbing his bag and heading straight for the door.

Before he left, Chiyo called out to him. "One more thing!"

Izuku turned around.

"Call me Chiyo if you want to." She smiled. "I think we are way past last name now."

"... Of course, Chiyo-sensei." Izuku smiled.

"Mom?" The boy with dark, short hair asked, confused by his mother's sudden urgency when she pulled him and his sister towards a strange woman.

Nana remained quiet, taking in another deep breath (how many times has she done that already?) as she continued to walk towards the social worker.

"M- Mama?" The girl asked, wincing slightly as she felt the pain of her mother's grip on her wrist.

Nana bit on her lips so hard that it started to bleed. She focused on the pain instead, ignoring the screaming behind her head telling her to turn around with her children, returning to the happy, almost fairytale-like life that she loved.

The life that slipped through her fingers when she found her husband laid lifeless in an abandoned warehouse.

"Shimura-san." A lady in black suit next to a black limousine called out to her, snapping her out of her hesitance. "It's now or never."

Nana let her lifeless nod answer instead of words. Letting go of her children's hands, Nana turned around and kneeled in front of them. Their tearful, shaking, scared, confused eyes broke her more than anything or anyone ever could. She shakily reached into her pockets and pulled out two letters, giving each to her children. She then spreaded her arms and pulled them into a goodbye hug.

The last one she would be able to give them.

"I'm sorry…!" Was all Nana could mutter as she tried to reel in her sobs.

She kept her arms around them for another few minutes before letting go, fearing that any seconds longer would just make it harder. The social worker then led her children into the car with a kind and gentle tone before closing the door shut. Nana had to look away from the sight of them slamming on the glasses, calling for her.

"Will they….?" Was all she could get out of her throat.

"... I'm sorry, Shimura-san." The social worker understood what Nana was fearing and apologized. "But if what you said is true, then keeping them together will just make it more dangerous for them. We'll split them up into different families."

She could only nod at that as the worker apologized once more before getting into the car.

Nana's quiet sobs turned into desperate wailings as she watched the car slowly disappear from her sight. Collapsing on her knees once more, Nana continued to scream into the thin air. She screamed for her daughter, her son, and her husband.

"Please come back…!" She begged them. "I'm so sorry! Mama is sorry! Please come back to me…!"

But her wailing were not answered.

"Please don't leave me alone…."

The silence mocked her suffering.

"Mom!" Izuku violently swung open the door.

Jolted awake by the sudden noise, Inko fell off the couch from her nap. With a tired groan, she looked up in annoyance and found her son frantically went over to her.

"You're home early today…." Inko cheered grumpily as she sleepily scratched her neck.

"Sorry. You, too." Izuku apologized as he helped Inko to sit back up on the couch. "You usually come back right before dinner."

"I finished my cases early, and the captain didn't let me take on anymore." Inko yawned. "Why are you coming home all…. panicky, by the way?"

"Oh, right." Like a bulb being lit up, Izuku stood up and looked around the living room. "Himiko and Rei aren't home, right?"

"Yeah, they're out for groceries." Inko confirmed. "Izuku, you're scaring me. What's going on?"

"I need to ask you this, and I need you to be completely honest with me, mom." Izuku looked into Inko's eyes. Despite being weirded out by the sudden seriousness, Inko firmly nodded.

Izuku took a deep breath.

"Do you know anyone named Shimura Nana?"

A/N: The cat that's already out of the bag has now officially out of the bag!

How will this affect Izuku's relationship with the adults? Or better, how will the adults react when they finally meet the child that they lost decades ago? How will she react?

How important Nana was to Chiyo?

How will the vestige of Seventh react to this new information?

When will the next chapter come out?

God, I wish I knew….

Also, this chapter is named Midoriya Inko because I simply didn't know what else to name it.