6 May 2179
An alarm sounded.
Mikumo jerked awake, rearing back, disorientated by a combination of pain, exhaustion and blurry vision.
"Akatani, it's okay, you're safe." An assuring voice spoke.
Mikumo remembered where he was.
Hospital.
He hated hospitals.
A fuzzy shape appeared in front of Mikumo, his hand reaching out on impulse to grasp it.
Sliding his spare glasses into place, Mikumo watched the world come into near clarity, hampered by the prescription of the glasses being a few years out of date.
"It was just the on-call alarm." Shizumu explained, the nurse's tone calm and grounding.
Mikumo felt his breathing slowly return to normal as he studied the nurse. He hadn't managed to get a good look at the man the night before, Mikumo had assumed he had an emitter quirk until he saw the green moss covering the back of his arms.
"How are you feeling, Akatani?"
"Fine, all things considered." Mikumo answered with a shrug, before burning pain reminded him he'd been stabbed in the shoulder.
Mikumo had collapsed from blood loss just after Hagakure had come round, waking in the hospital late into the night.
He'd been in surgery, whoever had attacked him had sliced the tendons and ligaments in his shoulder to confetti.
They had wanted to destroy his dream, to make sure he never became a hero. But Mikumo had been lucky, the hospital he'd admitted had a nurse with a healing quirk that worked directly on tendons and ligaments, a rare sight in this day and age.
Now, Mikumo realised that the nurse who'd healed him was Shizumu, he was willing to bet he'd find moss growing under his bandages if he was willing to look.
Months, maybe even years, of physiotherapy done overnight.
"You have a visitor."
Mikumo looked up at Shimuzu.
"A visitor?"
The door opened, revealing a middle-aged woman, her hair a familiar green shade, her eyes red and puffy.
It was Midoriya's mother.
Mikumo almost hadn't recognised her for a moment, her face was pinched, like she'd lost a lot of weight since he'd last seen her almost a month earlier.
Shimuzu excused himself. "I'll let you two talk."
"Ms. Midoriya." Mikumo sat up straighter as she moved over to sit in the chair by his bed. "Are you okay?"
"I-It's Izuku." Ms. Midoriya spoke, Mikumo could see she was barely keeping it together. "He's gone, they t-took him. He took him."
"W-What?"
"After you were attacked, it was him , he kidnapped Izuku, he took my son."
"You mean?"
Ms. Midoriya nodded. "Yes, All For One."
Mikumo's fists clenched, anger coursing through him.
The sound of Ms. Midoriya breaking down into tears cut through Mikumo's rage, looking up to see them bursting out of her like a leaking tap.
Mikumo reached out, taking her hand in his. "It's okay, Izuku will be okay."
Looking up, Ms. Midoriya gave him a watery smile. "I hope so, he has to be, because I don't know what to do if he isn't."
A fist slammed down on the table, leaving a dent in the metal surface.
"You should be conserving your strength." Nighteye commented.
All Might somehow swelled to an even greater size than he normally did in his hero form. "Conserving my strength? Midoriya is gone, he took him, your concerns about my strength mean nothing to me right now!"
Nighteye didn't flinch, the rest of the room looking on, quietened into an uncomfortable silence, the awkwardness growing with each passing second.
"I was merely making an observation." Nighteye finally spoke.
"Like you observed Midoriya's abduction with your quirk and decided not to inform any of us about it!" All Might snapped back.
"Your knowledge of my vision may have altered the course of events negatively, I couldn-"
"A fifteen year old boy, whose safety we were entrusted with is gone, taken, does that sound negative enough for you?" All Might demanded, eyes boring into his former sidekick.
A chinking sound echoed around the room as Nedzu placed his cup of tea down on the saucer. "Sasaki, please understand the damage you have caused with your decision not to share this information with anyone except Endeavor. Both in Midoriya's abduction and the loss of faith and trust we feel in you."
Nighteye knew better than to interrupt Nedzu at a moment like this, so instead he remained silent, impassive.
"Thus, if there is any further information from your visions related to Izuku Midoriya you have not shared with us, I advise you do so now." Nedzu concluded.
Silence reigned.
Hizashi slowly leaned over towards Shota. "Have they forgotten we're even here?"
"Most likely."
Nighteye finally spoke. "No, no further information."
"That's a lie."
Yellow eyes turned to regard the ever unassuming Naomasa Tsukauchi. "So you're my replacement then?"
"If you mean do I liaise between the police and All Might?" Tsukauchi paused. "Then yes I do, and I'm capable of separating my job and my emotions."
The unspoken implication that Nighteye wasn't capable hung in the air.
"So, what is it you're not telling us about? And don't lie again, my quirk will tell me if you do."
Nighteye glared coldly at Tsukauchi.
"Fine, ten days from now Izuku Midoriya's body washes up on Takoba Beach."
All Might was there in an instant, lifting Nighteye up by his lapels. "How dare you make light of this?"
Instead of speaking Nighteye simply looked down at All Might.
"He's not lying." Tsukauchi spoke. "He believes Midoriya will die."
"Believes?" Nedzu queried. "You doubt his statement."
"My quirk struggles to distinguish between the truth and a false truth someone may believe." Tsukauchi answered. "But I'm definitely picking up an undercurrent of doubt."
"Sasaki, what did your vision show you?" Nedzu turned to look at Nighteye, still hanging in the air, dangling from All Might's grip.
Nighteye paused, as if weighing up his options. "A news report, announcing Midoriya's death."
All Might instantly released Nighteye. "A news report?"
"Not a body itself." Nedzu pondered. "Thus your vision is questionable at best, there is no logic to All For One kidnapping Midoriya and then killing him later. Killing him on U.A. grounds would have created a far larger impact if that's what he wanted."
"So you think he took the little listener to experiment on him?" Hizashi questioned. "But what's so important about Midoriya that All For One would risk taking him like this?"
Hizashi immediately knew he'd asked a piercing question, he'd poked a secret no one wanted to share.
"Izuku Midoriya is All For One's child."
The room turned to look at Shota.
All Might frowned, surprised but not particularly shocked. "How-"
Shota interrupted him. "Midoriya knew his name, not as the Merchant of Quirks or The First Demon, but a name only few know. That was the first point that tipped me off, but the main reason was the way he fought at the USJ. Like he felt responsible for it, the sins of the father…"
"Are not the sins of the child." Nedzu finished.
"That's not how Midoriya feels." All Might realised, suddenly slumping into a chair, deflating into his natural form. "He carries the guilt for the actions of his father, even though he couldn't have done anything to stop him. Oh shit, he blames himself for my injury, doesn't he?"
No-one spoke, no-one knew what to say.
What could you say to that?
"Find him." Shota stated simply. "Find him and tell him it isn't his fault."
All Might nodded, rallying himself. "Then, where do we start?"
Tsukauchi stood. "We have a few suspects."
"Suspects?" Hizashi questioned. "I thought we knew it was All For One."
"In the greater scope, yes." Tsukauchi answered, producing a remote and pressing a button, activating a projector. "This is the feed from the camera in the ready room at the time of Midoriya's abduction."
Tsukauchi pressed the remote button again, starting the video.
Projected on the wall, they watched the door open and Midoriya enter.
The door swung closed as Midoriya took a deep breath, clearly steadying himself. After a few seconds he moved forward, taking a seat of the table, his every movement filled with nervous energy.
He suddenly stilled, staring at the reflective surface of the table below him.
The hairs on Toshinori's arms stood up on end as he watched Midoriya choke on the black ooze pouring from his mouth. His heart tightened, Toshinori knew exactly what Izuku had felt in that moment.
An explosion of air and ooze shot in every direction, Izuku hacking and coughing as he regained his breath as the ooze vanished sections of the walls and floor.
"One of All For One's known quirks." Toshinori explained. "Warping, it creates a black ooze from the target's mouth that acts as a warp portal, nowhere as versatile as Warp Gate, but still fairly useful."
Izuku suddenly turned wildly, freezing at what he saw.
And yet, watching the footage, none of them saw a thing, only empty space.
The video paused, Tsukauchi lowered the remote.
"There's nothing there." Nighteye spoke, staring at the wall the projector was casting onto. "There's no-one there."
"Ah, at first glance, yes." Tsukauchi answered, triggering the remote once more, changing the projection.
A figure appeared, dressed in an expensive suit, with messy white hair, his form fuzzy around the edges.
"All For One." Toshinori growled, his fists tightening.
"Right." Tsukauchi said. "Except he wasn't actually there, it was some kind of hologram, visible to the eye but not cameras, apart from at a certain light frequency."
The footage started again, this time with All For One visible, flickering slightly with every movement.
"Hello, my son."
The distorted sound of All For One's voice chilled each and everyone watching to the core.
On the projection Izuku flinched, his eyes briefly flicking to empty space.
"Ichigata, deal with your brother."
The footage paused again.
"Ichigata?" Aizawa questioned. "The first Child of All For One?"
"That's not possible." Toshinori stated. "Ichigata died, I saw it, years ago, not long after I first reciev-, not long after I met my mentor, she fought All For One to protect me, he was after my quirk."
"And we thought All For One was dead as well." Nighteye commented. "And we've seen where that's led us."
Toshinori restrained his annoyance, before speaking. "No, this isn't some situation where Ichigata was stabbed and fell off a building, he tried to betray All For One, to take his place. All For One stopped him, he didn't just kill Ichigata, he erased his mind entirely, a death of personality, then burnt the terrified mind that took Ichigata's place to death with a fire-breathing quirk."
"I thought the Children of All For One were unflinchingly loyal to him?" Aizawa queried. "I thought he bred them to be."
Nedzu answered. "As the name implies, Ichigata was the first clone of All For One, a perfect clone in every way, even his memories-"
"And the clone didn't fancy playing second fiddle to himself." Hizashi commented. "That's like Evil Clone 101, identical clones will always try to replace the original."
The inhabitants of the room turned to look at Hizashi.
"Villain I fought a few years back, Doppler, could make permanent copies of himself, made catching him a nightmare." Hizashi explained. "I caught twelve clones before I managed to get one convinced it was the original to rat out the real original and all the backup clones."
Nedzu regarded Hizashi for a few seconds, thinking deeply, before glancing over at Tsukauchi. "Please continue, I have a theory."
The footage resumed, Izuku was instantly slammed into the damaged table by an invisible force, causing it to buckle further.
"W-Why? Why are you doing this?"
"Midoriya recognised his attacker." Nighteye murmured.
"Exactly." Nedzu nodded, his ears suddenly twitching. "Tsukauchi, replay the last ten seconds."
The police officer nodded, following the principal's instructions.
"I was made for this, my destiny is to rise above my siblings, I'll crush them under my boot if I have to." Nedzu spoke calmly, as if reading from a script. "Ichigata is not just hiding his physical presence from the cameras, but his vocal presence as well."
"Except to your ears." Aizawa commented.
"Indeed." Nedzu affirmed.
The projection resumed, Izuku gasped, clearly being choked by his attacker.
"Mikumo."
Nedzu spoke again. "I've dealt with that hollow waste of flesh already. Don't worry, that quirkless's not dead, not this time. He wasn't my target, hurting him, that was just a perk of the job."
"Ichigata was the one who attacked Akatani." Nighteye commented. "And a desire to kill or maim his kin, obsessively so."
Izuku's fist slammed into empty air, they could see the pain cross his face as blood began leaking from his knuckles, his wrist bent the wrong way.
"Like I said, I was created to defeat you." Nedzu recited. "Now, this should work this time."
Black ooze poured from Izuku's throat and then he was gone.
All Might let out a strangled cry.
Nedzu spoke again. "I can't say I didn't enjoy that, he's been irritating me for weeks."
"Irritating for weeks?" Hizashi questioned. "Then doesn't that mean-"
"Excellent work as always, Ichigata." The projection of All For One gave a twisted expression, a dark smile. "Resume your cover for now, your time to step out into the sun will come soon."
"Oh crap, Ichigata's a student!" Hizashi exclaimed.
Nedzu sighed. "So it would seem."
"A student." Nighteye pondered. "Most likely a first year."
"Yes, I will review student files, starting with 1-A and prepare a list of suspects." Nedzu answered. "I suppose you will want to join the search parties while I do so, but try to conserve your strength, we do not know what lies ahead."
The room began to shuffle and stir, preparing to vacate.
"Midoriya's hand wasn't healing, Detective, roll it back." Aizawa requested suddenly, standing to get a closer look. "His quirks, they're being erased."
The footage rewinded and paused, showing Izuku's mangled hand again.
"Erased?" All Might questioned, his voice lacking its usual fire. "Like your quirk?"
Aizawa nodded. "We saw that at the USJ attack, one of them, Sangata, claimed to be a clone of All For One, and myself."
Tsukauchi chimed in. "The current hypothesis of the AFO Task Force is that All For One is using DNA samples of heroes to clone them, then take the quirks from the clones, thus-"
"Thus he's effectively copying quirks." All Might finished, coming to a haunting realisation. "I know why that bastard's taken Young Midoriya! All For One wants a more efficient method. He's going to steal Izuku's quirk, he's going to steal Quirksmith."
7 May 2179
"The search for missing U.A. student Izuku Midoriya continues, the fifteen year old disappeared two days ago during the first-year stage of the annual U.A. Sports Festival."
Katsuki glared at the TV as he slumped on the couch. After the nerd had vanished the whole tournament had been halted, first temporarily, then fully.
For the first time in the history of U.A. the Sports Festival had been cancelled.
Katsuki wanted to be angry, to blame the nerd for ruining his shot to be first, but all he felt was a coldness in the bottom of his stomach.
The old hag had said it was because he was afraid. Katsuki growled at the memory.
Katsuki Bakugo didn't get afraid, he fucking ate fear for breakfast.
A bag of frozen peas smacked into Katsuki's face.
"Oi, brat! Stop growling like a dog!" Mitsuki Bakugo yelled from the kitchen counter.
"I'll growl however I like!" Katsuki roared back, slamming a palm against the frozen peas, detonating an explosion.
"Then do it somewhere else." Mitsuki retorted, leaning over the couch and grabbing the bag of peas. "Thanks for defrosting these."
"I'm not a fucking microwave!" Katsuki yelled, jumping up off the couch.
Mitsuki tossed the empty bag in the bin. "Go take a walk, hit something, just do something, brat. Sitting around and stewing isn't going to help anyone."
Katsuki growled. "Fine, you don't want me around, I'll go out!"
Storming to the door, Katsuki slammed it behind himself, setting off in the direction of U.A.
Mitsuki sighed as silence fell over the house, only marred by the hum of the oven.
"Making food for Inko?" Masaru questioned, entering the ground floor.
Mitsuki nodded wordlessly, deep in thought.
"Are you okay?"
Mitsuki sighed. "Truthfully, no. Do I have to be, yes. Katsuki's just a kid and he already has a complicated enough relationship with Izuku, and Inko's just broken, since Hisashi left Izuku's been basically her entire world."
"The weight of the world doesn't rest on your shoulders." Masaru placed a hand on Mitsuki's shoulder. "I'm here to share it with you."
Mitsuki gave a small smile, before hugging her husband. "I just feel so useless, I've known Inko since we were kids, and I barely understand what's going on in Katsuki's head on the best of days, and I can't do anything to help them."
Masaru took his wife's hand. "Yes, you can. You can be right there next to them, for whatever happens next. The best you can do is to be there for them, and I'll be there for you."
Mitsuki nodded slightly. "How did I get a husband like you?"
"I believe you told me we were going out on a date, six hours after we met, right?"
"Another example of my great taste." Mitsuki retorted.
"The orange and purple sequins?" Masaru queried.
"Ever not going to bring up those fucking sequins?"
"Nope, not a chance."
Mitsuki chuckled.
"It's the waiting." Mitsuki stated. "It's the waiting that hurts."
"I know, but all we can do is wait." Masaru replied. "Wait and hope they find him, that Izuku's going to be safe."
Bakugo roared with rage as he swung his arm, igniting his palm, detonating and blasting the concrete pillar to rubble, before spinning around and destroying another pillar with his quirk.
Breathing heavily, Bakugo stilled, allowing the concrete dust to settle, covering him in a thin sheene.
"Wanna spar?"
Bakugo turned, finding Eijiro standing a short distance away, dressed in loose-fitting gym clothes, his hair lacking it's usual gel, falling limply around his face.
"Do I look like I need help?" Bakugo questioned.
Eijiro rubbed the back of his head. "Nah, I just can't stand sitting around anymore, I just wanna feel like I'm doing something."
Bakugo glared at Eijiro for a few seconds, before shrugging dismissively. "Sure, I'll spar, just don't cry when I fucking crush you into the ground."
Momo sat on the balcony of her bedroom, staring at the outline of U.A. in the distance.
It had all happened so fast, one second she'd been wishing Izuku good luck, the next he was gone. The whole of the campus had gone on lockdown, then the rumors that Mikumo had been rushed to hospital had been confirmed by Hagakure.
A knock sounded.
Momo started, turning to see Shoto stood awkwardly in the open door to her bedroom.
"Your butler, I think, said to come up." Shoto spoke. "If you-"
"Just take a seat, Shoto." Momo spoke, the teen's awkwardness taking her mind off her worry for a few moments.
Pulling a chair over, Shoto sat down, following Momo's gaze out to the U.A. campus.
"It looks so calm from here, doesn't it?" Momo queried.
Shoto nodded slightly. "It's a nice view."
"I don't understand it." Momo stated. "Why Izuku? Was it just at random, for his quirk, to hurt U.A.'s reputation?"
"His father is a villain."
Momo looked over at her friend. "His father is a villain?"
Shoto nodded solemnly. "Midoriya told me after our fight against Mineta. He didn't say which villain though."
"You think his father was the one to take him?" Momo questioned.
"I do, I told Nedzu, they were already aware." Shoto answered. "He wasn't planning to tell me, I think it just came out."
Momo lowered her head. "Izuku said he wanted to tell me something after the Sports Festival was over."
The two sat in silence, both comforted by the presence of the other.
An island in an ocean of uncertainty.
"What did he say?"
Shoto looked over. "Who?"
"Izuku, after your fight."
"Oh. He told me that I'm not Endeavor and it's my power, not his."
Momo smiled weakly. "That sounds about right, trying to convince you to use your fire even if it made his fight against you harder."
"Is that why you like him?"
Shoto's question held no bite, just curiosity.
Momo hesitated. "In part, yes. But it's more than that, there's this fire in him he doesn't show the world, this grit to never surrender, it kinda reminds me of-"
"All Might."
Momo nodded. "You've seen it too. When it comes to being a hero, all that matters is saving people, like at the USJ."
"You noticed it too, didn't you?"
"Tsu told me what happened with them, Izuku had a chance to escape, but instead he chose to fight Shigaraki and two of those Nomu by himself, to protect the rest of us." Momo paused. "He does all that with this steadfast confidence, and then someone compliments him-"
"And he starts crying." Shoto finished.
"Exactly." Momo replied. "This strength he has, to face down monsters, all without hardening his spirit, it doesn't change him."
Silence fell once again.
Momo sighed. "I just hope they find him soon."
"So do I."
"You have to eat, Inko."
Inko stared down at the bowl of rice dotted with peas in front of her.
"Not hungry."
Mitsuki groaned and slumped in her chair. "You need to keep your strength up, Izuku's going to need you once they find him."
A wave of sorrow and guilt washed over Inko, sobs wracking her body. "H-He's gone, my boy's g-gone, they'll never find him."
"You don't know that."
"I do!" Inko snapped back, tears dripping into her bowl. "If Izuku ever comes back from who's taken him, it won't be Izuku."
"You know who's taken him, don't you?" Mitsuki questioned.
"A monster." Inko sobbed. "I'll never see my Izuku again."
"What kind of monster? Have you told the police?"
Inko let out a wet snort. "He's the kind of monster who owns the police."
"Who?"
Inko looked over at her childhood friend. "It's his father, it's Hisa-"
A knock interrupted Inko, making her jump.
Mitsuki stared at her friend for a second before placing her hand on top of Inko's. "I'll get it."
Standing, Mitsuki turned towards the door.
This could be it, the police coming to inform Inko that Izuku was dead.
Mitsuki moved to the door, opening it.
She recognised them instantly, it was one of the kids from Katsuki's class. Mitsuki remembered seeing him next to Izuku when 1-A had been introduced at the Sports Festival.
It felt like a lifetime ago.
"Good afternoon, my name is Tenya Iida, I am a classmate of Midoriya." The teen bowed stiffly, like a robot.
"Huh, so you're the four eyes with the stick up his ass." Mitsuki commented, before moving to one side. "Come in."
"Thank you, Mrs. Bakugo, I presume." Iida entered the flat, his eyes landing on Inko at the kitchen table. "Mrs. Midoriya, I-"
"Ms. Midoriya." Inko spoke, voice hollow. "Izuku's father and I separated years ago, I kept Midoriya to match Izuku."
"I humbly apologise." Iida bowed again, his nose almost brushing the floor. "I was not aware."
Inko nodded. "I wasn't expecting you to be."
"Ms. Midoriya." Iida spoke. "I came here to apologise, I was talking to Midoriya before he was taken. He rushed off suddenly, I should have followed him. I could have-"
"Don't." Inko stated firmly. "The second you start blaming yourself for things like this, there's no coming back. Trust me."
"She's right." Mitsuki added. "You shouldn't blame yourself, there's no way you could have seen this coming, hell, the guy with the precognitive quirk didn't see it coming."
Inko spoke again. "If Izuku was here, he'd say the same thing. All you can do is be the best hero you can be."
"It's not your fault, Tenya Iida."
8 May 2179
With a yell, a gloved fist slammed into the bag.
Then another.
And another.
Ochako glared at the punching bag, her hands and arms vibrating from the impacts.
She'd barely even made it move.
"You're using the wrong bag."
Ochako turned to see Ojiro, dressed in his U.A. gym uniform.
"I thought your parents pulled you out of U.A., at least, that's what Ashido told me." Ochako commented bluntly.
Ojiro gave a shrug. "They tried, each trying to prove they care about me more. Told them not to bother, no point in them starting now."
"Oh." Ochako didn't know what to say, how could she, she'd only ever got support from her parents. "Well, you've got us guys."
"Thanks." Ojiro nodded slightly. "But, you're still using the wrong bag, that one is for those with strength quirks."
"Oh, I didn't realise." Ochako said. "I saw Deki using it last week during non-quirk training."
"Izuku's freakishly strong." Ojiro replied. "Aizawa even erased his quirk at one point, if anything he got only stronger."
Ochako smiled. "Sounds about right."
"That one is probably the right bag for you." Ojiro pointed to a punching bag a few down from where Ochako stood. "You know, when my parents were getting divorced I felt so useless, I felt like it was my fault I couldn't do anything about it. A teacher suggested I take up martial arts to take my mind off it."
"Did it work?"
Ojiro shrugged. "For the most part, it wasn't a cure, just a way to cope. I could show you a few moves if you'd like."
Uraraka nodded. "That'd be great."
Mikumo pushed the door open, entering the 1-H Lab.
The lights were off, it was clear that while it was no longer an active crime scene no-one had got around to cleaning up.
Next to his workbench stood his SHTR armor, still in its damaged and half-disassembled state.
Mikumo moved towards it, placing his palm on the lifeless chest repulsor, its battery long since depleted.
He glanced down, seeing the dried stain of his own blood, where he'd led useless, as others got hurt.
Hatsume.
Toru.
Izuku.
With a yell, Mikumo snatched up a wrench and smashed it into his suit, directly on the chest repulsor, but it refused to break.
Mikumo didn't stop, he hammered away with the wrench, sparks flying, hitting the repulsor again and again.
The suit toppled over, onto it's back and still Mikumo didn't stop.
He lost his grip on the tool, it spiralled away, but still he didn't stop, punching it instead.
And still it refused to break, glaring back at Mikumo, smeared with blood from his split knuckles.
Stopping, Mikumo's head turned.
He saw it, above Power Loader's desk.
Mikumo's mind flicked back to his first day at U.A., to Power Loader's welcome speech.
"Pro Heroes that rely on that gear to keep them safe. Therefore, I have one rule, just one rule. Go nuts, design whatever you want, push the boundaries of technology, but the result must always be safe. Otherwise, it meets Dusty."
The briefcase slammed shut, making all nine students jump, some rather more than others.
In Power Loader's grip rested a large, red and silver fire axe.
The light glinted off the axe, streaming in from a gap in the blinds.
Power Loader turned around, placing Dusty on a wall mounting behind his desk.
"Any equipment that doesn't meet both U.A. and my own personal standards for safety goes to the great junkyard in the sky and you start over. Understood?"
Mikumo walked over to the axe, staring up at it.
"I understand."
Grabbing it from its mount, Mikumo returned to stand over the SHTR suit.
With a yell, Mikumo raised the axe and brought it down, burying it in its chest.
The chest repulsor broke, shards of glass flying in every direction.
Mikumo let out a dry chuckle. "Huh, it shattered."
Tsuyu stared at the principal's door. She knew now must be a stressful time, a national manhunt was underway for Midoriya, but she still had to ask.
After Midoriya had vanished and the Sports Festival cancelled, Tsuyu had found herself with time to think.
About Mineta.
She at least owed Mineta the chance to explain.
It didn't mean she had to forgive Mineta, but she could hear her friend out.
Except Mineta wasn't answering texts, at first she assumed it was just sulking, refusing to reply to her, but as the days wore on she started to get worried.
Tsuyu had even texted everyone in 1-A and even a few from 1-B she was friendly with, asking when they'd last seen Mineta.
And that led her to her conclusion.
Mineta hadn't been seen since before Izuku went missing.
Tsuyu knocked.
"Come in."
The door opened by itself, the slight whir telling Tsuyu it was mechanical in nature.
She entered, finding the principal sitting behind his desk, as well the detective who'd spoken to Mineta about the abuse, Tsukauchi, stood to the side.
"Principal Nedzu, I'm sorry to interrupt right now-"
"You want to speak to Mineta, don't you?" Nedzu queried.
Tsuyu nodded, taking the seat the principal indicated to.
"I assumed you'd come asking soon." Nedzu said. "Understand, for now, what I tell you has to remain a secret."
Tsuyu nodded again. "I haven't been able to get hold of Mineta since the Sports Festival."
"Yes, unfortunately, as of the day of the Sports Festival, Mineta willingly returned to their mother's custody, at least legally."
Tsuyu sprang to her feet. "That's not possible, Mineta told me how she treated him, there's no way she could. There's no way that woman could convince Mineta to go with her, not willingly."
Nedzu regarded the teen as she slowly calmed down and returned to her chair. The outburst was far from the calm and collected teenager Nedzu had observed until now.
She clearly cared about Mineta.
"A student came forward with information about the situation." Nedzu explained. "They observed Mineta's mother use a form of mind control quirk to make Mineta want to go home with her. It also appears she has used this quirk on Mineta previously, but forced him to forget about it."
"Mineta said his mother was quirkless." Tsuyu stated, her voice hollow.
"As does her medical history and the Quirked Individuals Database." Nedzu informed. "It appears she's hidden this quirk for many years, or possibly made those around her forget about it and brainwashed individuals into altering her records."
"Mineta's gone, she's won." Tsuyu stated. "I didn't listen, Mineta tried to apologise, and I walked away, if I'd stayed then maybe-"
"Nothing would be different, she would have either brainwashed you as well, or made Mineta hurt you with her quirk." Tsukauchi assured, moving over to Tsuyu and placing a hand on her shoulder to calm her.
Nedzu spoke. "Mineta isn't gone, we know where he is, and we have evidence of Utsuro Botai using her unregistered quirk, CCTV and witness testimony."
"Yes, and anything Mineta told you about his mother would also be helpful, texts, chat logs between the two of you." Tsukauchi explained. "All of this will help us, don't worry, we'll bring Mineta home."
Tsuyu nodded. "I'll help, kero, as much as I can."
"Thank you, Asui." Tsukauchi smiled. "Don't worry, you'll see him again soon."
9 May 2179
His whole body ached.
Izuku groaned, opening his eyes to find himself led face down on a metal floor.
Rolling over, Izuku slowly raised his body into a sitting position, staring at the cell he found himself in and the hospital gown he was wearing.
He remembered what had happened now, saying goodbye to Momo, then Ichigata attacking, All For One, the ooze and then nothing.
Standing, Izuku honed in on the metal door in the opposite wall, his way out.
Raising his right arm, bracing it with his left, Izuku gathered One For All's power into his fingertip.
SMASH!
An explosion rocketed from Izuku's fingertip, crashing against the door.
It barely even dented, a small blemish not even the size of his palm. Izuku had put all of One For All's power into that attack, but instead the output had felt closer to fifty percent.
Izuku stared down at his throbbing finger, the skin purple and ruptured.
It wasn't healing.
Izuku reached out for Hyper Regeneration, he needed to heal before he could try again.
It wasn't there.
All Izuku felt in its place was cold.
His breathing quickened, Izuku reached out towards Quirksmith.
And found nothing.
Izuku dropped to his knees.
Quirksmith was gone.