Birds of a feather Flock Together

by Arachnocorvid

Midoriya Izumi had it rough for a while. Bullied and looked down upon for things out of control, she finds out that not even moving to the outskirts of Musutafu changes people's perception of her. She's used to it though, and pushes through it. People may call her useless, but she does her job perfectly, even at the age of 12. She has friends on her side. And an 8 mm caliber rifle

11. Crow's Watch

A man clad in dark robes jumped from rooftop to rooftop, keeping watch of Musutafu. Unlike heroes, this man was shrouded in the darkness of a cloak, and high above any regular patrol route. Also unlike underground heroes, he didn't have any kind of support from an agency or support item.

He went along, using his years of experience parkouring the city to get around, looking down on the streets and dark alleys in search of petty criminals that heroes might have missed, to beat the crap out of them and then let the police take them.

He was a vigilante. Had been for decades now, and managed to slip under the radar of everyone, by keeping a low profile, not making himself known. He made sure to keep his activities obscure enough for no one to take notice of him.

Upside is that he had never made it into the news or even been noticed. Downside is with his quirk, he had to keep it this way or he'd be instantly found out. It was the fact that he was persecuted in his youth by some strange characters wanting to "acquire" his quirk that he'd eventually become a vigilante.

Why didn't he become a hero? There were other times, before All Might's Golden Age, and before he knew it, it was too late for him to get into a hero school, being too old and deemed "unwilling to follow protocol".

He never really liked the Hero Commission anyway, and decided to take matters into his own hands long ago.

The man looked down, stalking down the alleys, searching for something. He'd been more active for a little over a month now, and with the winter holidays on, he had much more time to go around, not having to worry about his day job.

Still, he hadn't had luck in finding his target. It annoyed him, and he couldn't always beat up some goons he found messing around alleyways to cool off. If he kept at it, he'd end up bringing unwanted attention to himself, and he didn't keep his presence hidden to ruin it right now.

Seeing as there was nothing on the street just below him, he took some steps back, and ran to the edge of the rooftop, jumping and landing on the next to the building. The vigilante went over to the next edge and widened his eyes under his cloak after what he saw.

Down there, in the street, there was a bloodied body laying in the ground. Using his years of experience in parkour, the vigilante jumped down, bouncing from the walls of the two buildings to loosen his fall, until he got down.

He gasped after finding the state of the body. The skin and flesh of its face had been torn off, and huge bloodied spikes came out of his torso. Chunks of cracked and shattered bone were spread around its head and handless arms, the pool of blood cold and thick.

The vigilante recognized the body, mainly from its tattered suit and the chunks of bone. It was the underground hero Bonerush. He'd seen him on patrol a few times, and even managed to see him in action thanks to his quirk.

So seeing him in this state surprised him even more. Bonerush was a competent fighter and had a good, offensive quirk, so seeing him so disfigured and broken… He may not have a strong opinion on the underground hero, but it unsettled him regardless.

The vigilante got closer, making sure to not disturb possible signs of the crime scene. He walked around the corpse, and realized that the bloodied spikes (having realized they were most likely Bonerush's own bones, yikes) hadn't only come from the front, but some seemed to come out from his back, and were buried into the floor.

He didn't know how those could end there, so the vigilante decided to use his quirk to get more answers. He pulled down the mask covering his face under the hood of his cloak, revealing a tanned dark face with a yellow line going through it over his nose.

The vigilante was the same man that led one of the second year classes at Railosu Middle School, Lanbosu Kin. The yellow stripe on his face started to glow dimly, and he closed his eyes, bringing his hand down until the tip of his fingers brushed against the pool of blood.

His mind traveled back, and covered in a thick and blurry mist, he saw Bonerush lying on the ground, already dead. Kin cursed under his breath. His visions were unreliable, he could see into the past of objects just by touching them, but for living beings, there was something interfering with his abilities that didn't let him see into their past clearly.

With Bonerush now being considered "non-living" by his quirk, he couldn't even go back farther back than this point. Still, he still had his hands in the vision, so he may be able to see something after all.

His face was obscured, too blurry and foggy for Kin to make out anything, but there was clearly something messing around, a dark cloud right over where his head should be. Then, someone entered the field of his vision, getting on the fallen hero and starting to cut his hands with a knife.

Kin gasped, his concentration broken and opening his eyes, throwing himself off the vision.

"Toga?"

Taking care not to press his hand too much in the blood so as to contaminate the scene, Kin sank again into the vision, and saw how his former student cut through the hand of a dead man with an expression of absolute glee on her face, giggling when the blood sprayed on her body.

It was already uncomfortable having to watch a former student buck naked in one of his visions, but he forced himself to watch, just to see if Toga left any sort of clue as to where she could have gone.

She was what he had been searching for all this time, ever since her stunt with Saito-kun at school and running from home. Kin noticed some crows getting closer, and started pecking at the slit wrists, helping Toga into tearing the hands off the body.

The vigilante cringed and forced himself to keep the vision up as Toga used brute force to finish ripping the hand out of the body.

"Done~!" Toga said, picking the other severed hand and walking out of view of the field of vision of his quirk while waving around the bloodied hands.

Kin kept the vision up for a while, but he didn't see much, just sometimes a crow getting closer and pecking at the hero's flesh or the bone spikes coming out of his chest. But nothing else happened, eventually the crows flew away and even the black fog around Bonerush's face faded, probably because the crows that made that revolting scene had also left.

The vigilante blinked himself awake, rubbing the bridge of his nose. He took deep breaths, trying to calm himself and not throw up right in the middle of a crime scene. What had happened to Toga?

She was such a normal girl in class, never sticking out or making a scene, always following the rules and being such a nice girl to be around for the other students in class. Whatever had corrupted her into becoming a bloodthirsty monster, Kin had his suspicions it had something to do with all the crows around her.

He didn't see where Toga had gone after doing this, and the blood had gone cold, so finding her right now would be hard. Regardless, Kin put on his mask and the hood of his cloak again, and jumped from side to side of the wall, this time moving up back to the rooftops.

If he is lucky, he may find Toga, and stop this madness and whoever is taking advantage of her to brutalize people. How far could Toga have gone? Literally and figuratively.

As he reached the rooftop and started running to the building, looking down for any signs of his former student, Kin wondered how such a normal girl could end up doing all of this. He had cursed himself from not being closer to the incident when it happened, and letting himself be dragged away in the evacuation of the school.

He thought that the heroes would catch her and resolve the issue, but Toga had somehow managed to escape and was now killing innocent people in order to use her messed up quirk.

He felt somehow responsible, cursing himself for not noticing any signs of Toga being corrupted or her desire to harm others. Kin had spent enough time beating up petty criminals to notice these kind of things, so for someone to slip under his radar like that… it didn't feel right with him.

He would find Toga, capture her and hand her to the authorities. Whether she really was a psycho or she had been corrupted by some sort of villain with control over crows, he'd find out, and solve this matter with his own hands.

He was the only one that could do it after all. No hero was capable, Bonerush proved it.

It was his mission.

"Oh, I should call the police about the body" He suddenly remembered, and made an anonymous call.

Yokumiru Mera grumbled under the huge pile of paperwork on his desk. Bonerush had gone and died right when he was tasked with contacting Giran to get Karasu to see if they'd do a job for them through him.

Now that he was dead, the HPSC didn't even know if Karasu did the job, because someone like them would surely know when their clients wouldn't be able to pay up thanks to a man as capable as getting information like Giran.

One of the most worrying scenarios for the high executives of the Commission was that Karasu had suspected the involvement of the HPSC and decided to kill Bonerush. The loss of such a valuable underground agent with his contacts also rubbed the Madam President, so she had ordered Mera take over the investigation, his sleep schedule be damned.

The phone of his desk rang, and Mera picked it up, listening to the woman on the other side, a forensics doctor that Mera had worked with before in the past.

"You got the cause of death?"

"Yes, multiple lacerations and cuts that lead to blood loss along with a very deep puncture in his right eye, penetrating deep into brain tissue. He died instantly and was spared on choking on his own blood"

"Delightfully graphic. So no bullet wounds?"

"No, but now that you mention it, the recovery team had to saw his back bones from the floor to get the corpse out of the ground"

"Yes, I'm aware"

"Well, I can't blame for the people at the recovery scene for not noticing, but the injuries in his back from his bones bursting out out his body, they clearly form a word: 'rifle'"

"Rifle? But there wasn't that type of wound, right?"

"Yeah. The head injury was definitely inflicted by something sharp and precise, but there were no traces of a bullet inside his head"

"I see… anything else to note?"

"Yes, he was dismembered after dying, the way the blood was drained implies that the skin and flesh of his face along with his hands were removed after being killed. Also, it wasn't a clean cut. Unlike the cut on his chest and neck, something hit his wrists multiple times in order to cut bone and flesh, and was then torn off his body"

Mera leaned in his chair, furrowing his brow as he wrote everything down in a document.

"Really? But I was told there were pieces of shattered bones everywhere. And you're telling me the same killer who effortlessly shattered his steel hard bones then had trouble cutting off his hands?"

"Yes, the pieces I was given indicate that they were broken after receiving an extreme blunt force trauma. Maybe the killer removed his hands to obscure evidence about the nature of a quirk capable of bypassing his defense like that"

Mera felt himself physically age as he stared at the screen of his computer, the half written report of the document staring back at him. He sighed, dragging a hand through his face and feeling the bags under his eyes darken.

"Alright. Got it. Thanks for your great work, Chōsai-san"

"Always. And, Mera-san?"

"Hmm?"

"Try getting some sleep"

Mera chuckled, appreciating the humor.

"I'll try letting my superiors know about your concern"

"Thank you. Take care of yourself, Mera-san. Have a great night"

"Likewise"

The line of the phone died, and Mera sighed again. The light of the screen flashed against his face, reminding him of all the work he still had to do thanks to this asshole of a killer. He pulled himself and sat straight on the chair, stretching his neck and returning to work on the report and documents about the case.

"Come on, Yokomiru, the sooner you finish, the sooner you sleep"

It was thanks to a few dozen cups of coffee that he managed to get the report in time for the next day, and as a reward, even got time for a 2 hour nap.

"What!?"

Bullseye glared at the man in front of him, grabbing him and pulling his shirt while giving him a deathglare. The two grunts beside them drew their guns and pointed them at the hunter.

"What gives, dude?!" The man under Bullseye's grasp complained, looking at him with fear in his eyes.

"Are you certain? You didn't confuse him with anyone else?"

"I'm sure dude! It's Giran! I met with him! He's Karasu's handler, dude!"

Bullseye grunted and threw the man to the floor, ignoring the other two idiots and walking away. The alley was starting to get a bit of attention, and even scum from the underground didn't want scenes breaking around. Better to stay unnoticed by heroes.

Still, Bullseye felt very tempted to cause a scene right there. He had been looking into the targets of the Black Bullet Killer, their name apparently having been spread through the underground as Karasu, and had finally come in contact with a gang that claimed that they had hired him to terminate a hero.

He was lucky the gang was in his turf from the Order, and went to question them about how to contact Karasu. Giran being his handler was terrible news. Bullseye wanted Karasu to remove the pain in the ass that was Diana, but Giran certainly didn't want Diana dead. He was making so much money thanks to her.

Looking for Karasu directly was bound to be impossible, as no one in the underground knew what he looked like. No one other than stupid Giran. And now, Diana was giving him even more problems even by looking for ways to kill her.

Were there any other assassins up to the task? No, that had been the Order's business before the chickened out after All Might's rise. Karasu was the only standout killer for hire in the last decade.

If he had appeared a few decades back, the Order would have certainly accepted him into their own. Bullseye wondered if Karasu would have accepted such a boring substitute as a hunting dog for a second rate government agency over making big bucks on his own.

The hunter gritted his teeth, abandoning the shady parts of town, and walking into more open streets. He had barely gotten a job since the winter holidays started, and was starting to run through his savings.

Hiring Karasu would have already put him dangerously on the limit, but the long term benefit with Diana out of the picture would surely help him recover quickly. Now, if he didn't find a way to contact him outside of reaching Giran… He would be in trouble.

Giran was annoying scum, but he would be smart enough to question Bullseye if he demanded a meeting with Karasu which he couldn't listen to.

He lit up a cigarette and inhaled the smoke, then puffing it out through his nostrils. He looked up into the night sky, thinking over his options. He cursed the Order, for allowing themselves to sink to such an extent they didn't care about their employer, scratch that, their only employer to show such blatant favoritism, being forced to operate legally while half of the veterans had huge kill counts. He hated that even despite letting their claws be cut, they forced the idiotic rules that only applied when they were an assassin guild.

"Fuck the Order. Fuck the rules"

Bullseye gritted his teeth, and made a decision. If the Order wouldn't do anything about it and he couldn't approach this issue by a third party, he'd handle it himself.

"I've waited long enough to meet Diana, no more"

---

11 - Crow's Watch

Izumi groggily sat on her bed. She felt only half woken up, her eyelids heavy, and her eyebags feeling physically noticeable through her skin alone. She yawned and looked at the clock on her nightstand.

It had only been four hours since she had gotten to bed. Just wonderful. Well, she did get to bed late since she went to the abandoned building to set Toga-senpai there and all, so whatever.

Izumi sighed, and went to the bathroom, dragging her feet through the small apartment. She splashed some water into her face, washing her face and finally waking up. After glaring at the mirror, she was greeted by a stare with deeper eyebags and even messier hair.

She stared at her reflection for a few seconds, thinking over where to even begin to fix her hair. Eventually she sighed, shrugging her shoulders and rolling her eyes, getting out of the bathroom without bothering to fix her hair.

"Ah, Izumi you're up. What's with that hair, young girl?" Izumi didn't even bother to look at Inko, feeling it'd be just a waste of effort for her tired eyes. She did pull her head away when Inko tried to touch her hair to somewhat fix it.

"Izumi! Let me jus-"

"Let me be"

Inko's hand flinched back, and Izumi took her chance to go around her and into the kitchen, to prepare some breakfast for herself. Inko followed after her, staying on the doorframe, just out of reach from Izumi.

"Izumi… where were you last night?" The teen didn't bother responding to her, and just finished putting the rice in the rice maker, pressing the button that made the machine start cooking.

"Izumi, answer me." Silence. "Izumi!" She finally turned her eyes, feeling too tired to bother moving anything else to acknowledge her.

"Izumi, do you really think I don't know when you get home late? For goodness sake, Izumi! Look at your face! You have bigger eyebags than on school days! I'm worried about you, Izumi! Why do you get back so late? Where do you even go? What do you do!?"

Inko was panting, her face a mix of anger, frustration and worry. Izumi didn't really find it in herself to care. That was all that Inko felt towards her. Worry. Shame. Frustration that she didn't behave like a normal girl.

Well, she is 'normal', and that's what makes her abnormal.

The rice cooker beeped, and Izumi brought her attention back to it, putting the cooked rice in a bowl. She then ignored Inko, going around her and sitting on the futon of the living room, eating the bowl silently, staring into nothing.

Wonder how senpai slept… I should get some things to make the abandoned building more livable. I never expected it to be anything more than a place to hang out with the murder and build my stuff. I wonder if senpai needs anything else other than blood…

Izumi made a plan for the day, thinking of different things that Toga-senpai may need. After finishing the bowl of rice, Izumi washed it and left it to dry in the kitchen, then went to her room going over Inko again who was in the way, and got dressed.

She put on her warm and tight coat and grabbed her gloves, as well as some darts that she hid in her pockets.

Izumi had left the rifle in the safe in the forest, with the crows, so she didn't need to pack it in a way that Inko wouldn't ask questions about it. Right when she was about to leave the apartment once again, Inko gets in the way.

"You aren't going anywhere, missy! I've had it with you and going out all day and night and keeping me worried over where you could be! Until you tell me where you go and who you are with, you are grounded inside!"

Izumi raised an eyebrow, wondering where that outburst came from. Inko was clearly worked up about her, she breathed unevenly compared to Izumi, who took great care to keep it steady until staying in her zen state was second nature to her.

She was disappointed Inko couldn't kept her cool in a moment like this, when she wanted to assert the authority she thought she had over Izumi.

"No"

Izumi's response stunned Inko. All the energy and drive that had gone to tell Izumi to obey were flipped in an instant into pure shock. Inko never really asserted herself on Izumi, that was more father's role. Even when they moved out and Izumi's grades started to drop when she started taking on hero hunts and not caring about school, Inko never raised her voice, and Izumi always followed along with anything that didn't have to do with abandoning the crows.

So it took Inko as a surprise, even though Izumi was doing what she wanted, leaving the apartment and returning whenever she wanted. Inko never thought that Izumi would actually talk back to her in such a way when she showed how upset she was. It was also the way Izumi talked back. Not in anger or frustration. Just in a completely calm and deadpan way, as if she wasn't even bothered by Inko trying to stop her.

But why would she be bothered by it? It's not like Inko was a real obstacle to her. The fact that she had been arriving at any hour she liked was proof enough that Inko couldn't stop her then, so neither can she now. Not in her current state.

Inko only had the power Izumi gave her, her authority being meaningless for her, a hunter outside the rules society functioned in. She was an outsider rockin into the herd that was society. Its laws didn't bother her anymore, and neither did Inko's words.

Izumi passed through Inko, going around her and ignoring her stunned state, as she had done countless times that day alone. She opened the door and turned around to look at Inko, who looked at Izumi with a desperate and sad look.

Pathetic.

"I don't have to explain myself to you. Besides, I know you are smart enough to know where and who I am with. But you aren't welcome to go there either." Izumi narrowed her eyes, her heart betraying her breath. "You are a bad influence after all"

Izumi closed the door. Putting a hand on her chest and sighing, keeping her heart under control and quieting her emotions, becoming the perfect hunter once again. She left behind the apartment complex, ignoring the muffled wail that came from the other side of the door.

On her way down the apartment complex, she met with a few crows, having flown all the way there. Among them were Wuji, Urusai and Shiro, with a few others as well.

Wuji and Urusai flew towards her, and Izumi received them on her hand, Urusai landing on her right wrist while Wuji just went to roost on her left shoulder.

Your head looks like a poorly made nest.

Izumi pouted, and shook her shoulder, making Wuji have to beat his wings in place to not fall.

"Don't be like that, I couldn't be bothered to brush it"

"Grooming is important." Urusai said, opening his beak, in a voice he'd copied from a cat healthcare commercial. How he'd watched that commercial to get that voice, Izumi didn't know.

Izumi just rolled her eyes, and allowed Wuji to start grooming her hair, pulling it with his beak. Another crow joined him, landing on top of Izumi's head and doing the same. Izumi sighed, waving at Shiro and other crows that were following her.

Shiro didn't get out of the forest often, or rather, didn't get so out in the open, since because of his white feathers, he stood out quite a bit, and with how hysterical some people could get about crows, specially in Gaulusu, he and a few other crows just stood around hidden in trees whenever they went to see Izumi there.

And that behavior was warranted, as the few people that were out in the street looked down at Izumi, glaring at her for being around the crows. She ignored them and kept walking, enjoying the fact people at the very least got out of her way.

She of course noticed a few old ladies whisper among themselves, probably gossiping about her, and paid it no mind. Izumi did narrow her eyes at a man that tried to swat a crow that was merely on top of his car.

Wuji and Urusai also saw that, and Izumi really glared out at the man as she passed through, turning her head to keep glaring at him as she did so.

"What? Something to say? Some freaky kid you are"

He spat on the ground and Izumi kept walking. Wuji flew from her shoulder, leaving just the other crow to try unraveling the messy nest that was her hair. Izumi sighed, looking at Urusai and petting him just below his ears, just like he liked it. She smiled as he made a clicking sound.

"How is Toga-senpai doing?" Urusai turned his head, grabbing Izumi's finger with his beak to keep going, and Izumi kept rubbing him right below his beak, into his neck.

"Still. There" He talked in another voice completely different with each word. "Asleep"

Well, that was good, it seemed like Toga-senpai at the very least appreciated the place to rest.

There's some short of commotion on Izumi's back, with someone screaming and a crash echoing. Izumi smiled, seeing Wuji and a bunch of crows fly away with one of the side mirrors of the car of the man that tried to swat one of them earlier.

She also heard him scream and curse at the crows.

Serves him right.

Izumi spent the rest of the morning getting groceries and different stuff that she thought Toga-senpai might need. Along the way, the crows had managed to somewhat "fix" her hair, but there was so much they could do without a brush and to the mess that was Izumi's hair.

They flew off once she had to enter the stores, since the shopkeepers would most likely kick Izumi out if she got the scary flying menaces inside. Izumi picked up a small bag and filled it with different snacks, her experience in the forest helping her recognize which ones would be best for someone that needed to recover energy with just a quick snack.

Nuts and energy bars were mostly the best option, but she also packed a few sweets, the sugar being a nice source of energy as well. When she went to the cashier to pay, the man looked at her as if inspecting her, then nodded his head.

Did she look so tired that he didn't question all the energy rich food she picked? That wasn't that important, though Izumi couldn't help but save that information in the back of her mind. She didn't look that tired. Surely.

Izumi went to a sports shop next, picking nice and durable hiking gear, warm enough that Toga-senpai could use it to protect herself from the cold whenever she could afford wearing clothes. Izumi did ask around in the shop if they had clothes that support the kind of transformation that Toga-senpai described to her yesterday.

Apparently that was a super rare transformation sequence and for such clothes to exist they would need to be specifically ordered from a quirk-conforming company. Izumi hadn't really used anything from those kinds of companies for obvious reasons, but found frustrating the need to input the personal quirk data of a client in order to be able to even order the clothes.

That was probably set up that way for security reasons, but she couldn't actually set an order to Detnerat as a quirkless girl asking for an order, specially if she couldn't provide the quirk ID of the supposed friend. That would certainly ring some sort of alarm.

Perhaps she could ask Giran if he knew of a way to get quirk-conforming clothes that didn't disturb Toga-senpai's transfo-

Izumi stopped herself, blinking. She was just doing Toga-senpai a favor. Going for Giran to get some help would definitely be too much, and she'd had to disclose the sensitive information Toga-senpai trusted her with, with him, instead of quirk-conforming company.

She shook her head, and focused on merely getting regular clothes that she could be comfortable and warm in. Izumi did see a nice looking traveling pillow, and got it as well. It was actually kinda nice.

Her last stop was at a pharmacy, where she looked around for disposable syringes. Toga-senpai seemed to like the direct approach, but having a bunch of these wouldn't be a bad thing. Izumi also got a few other useful things, wondering if Toga-senpai would miss not having them and went to the check.

The cashier here also gave her a concerned look, this time looking at the disposable syringes and Izumi's heavy eyebags. Izumi glared at her and paid without saying a word. When would people learn to mind their own business?

Izumi made her way to the shinkansen station with the newly bought backpack on her back, filled with everything else she had bought. Two crows were on top of her head and backpack respectively, still trying to fix her hair.

A few people recognized her, glaring at her from the continuous and more open friendly display she showed towards the crows. Izumi didn't pay them any attention. The people here hated crows, but they also had learnt the hard way not to mess with them.

Crows were incredibly persistent when holding grudges, so most people weren't as eager to do anything else than glare at Izumi and whisper to themselves behind her back. Izumi wondered whether the students of Railosu would have wisened up like the adults if she hadn't changed and scared back her main bully, Samehada.

They may have found out the hard way like that man earlier. Pretty sure he hated crows more for breaking and taking away the side mirror of his car, but he got it coming. He messed with them after all.

Izumi felt her work phone vibrate on her pocket, and took it out. It was Giran.

"Giran"

"Hey, Karasu~ Heard that Bonerush bit it already. Pretty quick job, thought you liked to stalk your prey."

"This one was more sensitive. You know this already. Why did you call?"

"Sheesh, so harsh. You know I lost a pretty good informant because of you. I want some sort of compensation, so let's meet up~ Where are you right now?"

"Musutafu. On my way to the station"

"Ahh, great then. Let's meet at our usual spot in Konukoru."

"Fine by me, though I have to take care of something in the forest first"

"Alright. I'll take a while to get there so that's actually pretty good for ya~ Well, see ya~"

Izumi hung up, and sighed. She was kinda annoyed about having to compensate Giran when he constantly stretched her terms of their deal thin, with clients rushing her work or demanding other stupid requests.

But she did corner Giran on a whim and forced him to accept her terminating an important asset for his business, so she accepted that she would need to compensate him for that. He better not get over himself with the compensation though. Izumi wasn't going to let him scam her to work for free for a year, even if she was in it for the feeling and the excitement, she still needed gear.

She had also spent quite a bit of her spare money this morning, so she didn't want to compromise on that too much. Before she knew it, Izumi arrived at the station, and got into the Shinkanshen, with the crows sneaking in as well on their usual hiding spots.

Izumi found herself browsing different blogs on MakeshiftGo, mainly looking into forums and discussions on quirk-conforming clothes and gear. There were quite a lot of them, some very popular as there was a large community of heteromorph users in the site that used it mainly for those types of discussions.

Izumi had checked a few of those posts before, but never in depth. She was surprised to see discussions of hero gear for mutant type quirks, how complex they were and how a lot of heteromorphs complained about the lack of resources for them that could use simplified versions of some hero's suits.

She even found that there were quirk-conforming clothes for emitter types, which surprised her quite a bit. Izumi had assumed only transformation and mutant types needed them, but apparently quite a few emitters just didn't like standardized clothing, and there were a bunch of studies made on emitter quirks in order to facilitate their use.

Izumi found it ironic, how emitters were the ones needing quirk-conforming items the least, yet had the most extensive research done on them. She didn't know about the apparent drama of the transformation and heteromorphs with high tech quirk-conforming multinationals with expending so much research for niche emitter-conforming items despite transformation and mutants needing it more.

Now Izumi understood a bit better why zoomCEO said she preferred Detnerat over other quirk conforming companies. They were the ones that cared the most in supplying an equal amount of attention to all types of quirks and effects that clothes and items may require for the needs of each individual.

Despite all that, Izumi didn't find a single blog or forum where the topic of a transformation type that destroys or consumes fabric was involved. Best Jeanist was the only hero that had a quirk with any information involving using the clothes he was wearing. But that was the thing, he used his clothes, not consumed them.

And the company in charge of his costume was his own fashion design denim brand line. Izumi expected better from the number 3 hero, using regular clothes as his hero suit… He better have something else going on with his suit, otherwise Izumi would take him on a hunt, it'd be trivially easy.

No regular fabric would stop a Black Bullet.

The lack of answers on this particular topic was annoying, and Izumi was even about to send a message to zoomCEO and ask them if they knew about the topic, but right before she was going to press the send button, Izumi stopped.

Her search history was safe thanks to her special phone but still… She decided to hold off and not involve zoomCEO on this. The topic was about a villain's quirk after all, better to not involve unnecessary people in it. Especially someone that was looking to get into a hero school, even if their target was the Support Department.

She logged off, and decided to open YoTube. A grin spread on her face after seeing a new video from Gentle Criminal and La Brava, and pressed play on it.

On her way to the abandoned building, on the usual path she had taken countless times in the forest, Izumi was met by the crows from the nest that greeted her and the crows had come from Musutafu with her.

There were quite a few more crows than usual, Izumi mused. Hattori approached closer, and landed on Izumi's wrist after she extended her arm for him.

"What's up, guys?"

Human. Building.

Izumi blinked a few times. She had left Toga-senpai in the abandoned building at night, yes, but there were a few cows awake. Surely the murder would know already. Even the crows of Musutafu knew about it, some of which weren't with her yesterday when she had been with Toga-senpai.

"Blonde? No clothes?"

"Caw!" Yes.

"It's alright, I brought her there"

All the crows were looking at her. What was the big deal?

"I'm just helping a fellow hunter. It's fine, you don't have to worry about it"

Wuji cawed at the group, and went ahead, a few other crows following behind him. The rest, either followed Izumi by flying next to her, from tree to tree, or hitched a ride from her head or shoulders.

Not that Izumi minded. Though the added weight was a bit noticeable.

She noticed a trail of smoke coming from the abandoned building. There was nothing to worry about, the trail was thin enough she recognized it must come from the furnace, and besides, if something had happened, the murder would have told her about it already.

When the building was in sight, Izumi noticed the crows were waiting outside of it, instead of inside like some of them used to do. Izumi irked an eyebrow but didn't think much of it. They were probably being a bit shy.

The hunter got inside the cabin, and looked around. The spot where she had set Toga-senpai with a blanket to sleep was empty, and there was no sight of Toga-senpai to be seen. Izumi sighed, a bit disappointed, and set the backpack on the table in the middle of the cabin.

What was I thinking? Of course she'd leave. I only offered a place to sleep. She mentioned how she just used communal places to sleep and nothing more. Why did I assume this would be dif-

"Hey Midoriya-chan and karasu-kuns~!"

Izumi almost yelped, turning around to find a very much not gone Toga-senpai that she had somehow not noticed getting closer. Izumi sighed, calming her drumming heart. Toga-senpai had the blanket wrapped around her body, and had a cheerful look on her face.

"Ah, there you are. I thought you had left already"

"Leave? Nah~ it's so warm in here~" Her smile dropped a bit. "Did you want me to leave?"

"No! I, I mean, no, you can stay as much as you like here, it's fine"

Some of the crows that were present during yesterday's hunt with Toga-senpai got closer, getting even on top of the table. The rest kept their distance and observed the two teens.

"Ok~" Her toothy smile returned to her face. "There's a huge cave under those vines! I was surprised after finding that"

"Ah, that's where you were? Yes, there's a huge path of tunnels going around below the forest. Some villain group did it in the past, even connecting to the city, but those paths were blocked after the villains were taken down"

Toga-senpai hummed, looking at Izumi. Her bright feline yellow eyes looked at Izumi so deeply she felt a bit embarrassed, and turned her head to hide her blush.

"So, uhm, how did you sleep?"

Senpai's smile seemed to widen, the same eyes that narrowed on Bonerush yesterday and locked in to slice his neck now wide and bright.

"Oh, so good! Thanks for the blanket~ I didn't get to sleep in a cozy and warm place in sooooo long~"

"I'm glad, sorry I didn't have an actual mattress though. Never expected to have to sleep here"

"That's fine, don't worry~ I wrapped myself in a human burrito~! Like this~!"

She demonstrated it by quite literally wrapping the blanket around her in the shape of an actual burrito. Izumi didn't exactly know what to reply. Thank Urusai, for picking that very moment to copy Toga-senpai's voice.

"Human burrito~"

"Woah! Did he copy me?"

"Y-yes. That's Urusai. He… likes to copy voices a lot. More than any other crow"

"So every crow can talk? Wuji-chan said a few words yesterday~"

"Well, not exactly talk like a human. Crows have a very complex throat that allows them to mimic every sound"

"Every sound?"

"Yeah"

As if to prove her point, Urusai opened his beak and let out a powerful blast straight from the siren of an ambulance. Toga-senpai fell on her back, the burrito she had wrapped herself in not letting her move comfortably, while Izumi brought her hands to her ears.

The rest of the crows were equally annoyed, cawing at Urusai, who had to fly around the cabin to not get caught by the rest of them while imitating All Might's distinctive laugh. Izumi opened her mouth, trying to unblock her ears.

"You ok?" She offered a hand to Toga-senpai.

"Yeah. Wow. Now I get why he's called Urusai" She managed to get an arm out of the blanket and accepted Izumi's hand.

"Yes, sorry about that" Izumi pulled Toga-senpai up. "Urusai, sometimes would do that to annoy people and the murder alike. At least he doesn't pull out when I'm on a hunt"

"Oh, that'd be the worst. It's amazing how loud he was though. Didn't know crows could be so loud"

"Well, Urusai is special, his quirk is sound based, so unlike the rest, his imitations are perfect in every way"

"That was a quirk!? I didn't know crows could have quirks. Was that why people were always scared of them?"

Izumi sighed. That made sense, the SASC would try to keep information about quirked animals to a minimum.

"Kinda. A lot more animals than people think can have quirks. Before I became Karasu, I used to only hunt animals, a lot of which had quirks."

"Hmmm~ I see~ So you've been pretty cool for a long time then~"

Izumi didn't know how to respond to that. Should she say thanks? Tell senpai she was also pretty cool? Her face was so much more expressive than any crow, but Izumi found herself lost in all of that complexity. Compared to Giran, Toga-senpai who was so similar to Izumi in some ways was harder to read.

Senpai had also stayed silent after that, just looking at Izumi with a smile on her face. Izumi was a bit nervous because of it, somewhat breaking her calm breathing and heart rate. Was her hair still a mess? Or were her eyebags too distracting? Other people always said she had a mean glare…

"Is…something the matter?"

"Hmm? What do you mean?" Toga-senpai tilted her head, in a way it reminded Izumi how some crows would often do the same.

"Well, you keep staring straight at me…"

Izumi felt a bit self conscious, suddenly wishing she'd checked out her hair. She wasn't one to care about her appearance, not anymore. But she didn't want Toga-senpai to think less of her because of it.

Maybe I should have checked in a mirror how they groomed my hair…

"Oh, it's just that it's nice to see your face and hear your real voice! They are way cuter than the helmet~"

"E-eh? Cu-cute?" Izumi felt her face heat up.

"Yep! Those eyes always seemed to look beyond things anyone else noticed~ I can tell how sharp they are~ And I really like how you did your hair~"

"Ah, uhm, thank you. Wuji, Chīkuchi and Lave did my hair actually." Izumi looked away, feeling a bit embarrassed and struggling a bit to slow her heart and remove the blush from her face.

"Wait, the crows did it!? That's so cool!" Izumi looked at Toga-senpai, surprised. She really wasn't used to any other people praising the crows. Giran only praised their usefulness as tools, which Izumi always disliked, but Toga-senpai seemed to accept their quirks and abilities without any sort of negative thought behind it.

"Head nest" Wuji cawed, and some of the other crows cawed alongside him.

"Nest? Hmmm" The vampire circled around Izumi, dragging the end of the blanket through the floor. "Hey, you're right! Kinda looks like a nest~"

Izumi blinked and pulled her phone, taking a look at herself with the internal camera. Her hair was better than when she woke up, and it did seem like they had been grooming it like they would have a nest. Izumi was glad they didn't stuff sticks or shiny things into it, at least.

"Is that why you guys groom my hair? To turn it into a nest?"

Some crows seemed to look away, as if they were caught while others cawed and chirped, bouncing from side to side.

Oh, you smartasses, I'll get you for that.

Izumi couldn't help but smile, not being able to get annoyed for long over that.

"Midoriya-chan, I'm curious, do all crows have names?"

"Yeah, I named a lot of them, but others had names beforehand."

"How many crows are there?"

"How many? Hmmm… Well, this community is very big, almost every crow in Japan is connected somehow to us. There's thousands of them."

"What!? And you know all their names!?"

"Oh, no, no. I don't know all personally, I'm close with the few dozen that live around me…" She put a hand on her chin in thought. "Maybe around two hundred of them that I've had close encounters with? But I I'm close friends with fewer"

Now was Toga's time to be surprised, over the amount of crows that were seemingly connected to Izumi. Was that how Karasu managed to go anywhere in Japan and always manage to pull out any job?

"Amazing"

"You think so?"

"Yeah! You'd put some hero nerd to shame if you can distinguish so many crows and remember their names!"

"It's not that impressive…"

"It really is! And you have that look on your face… like you know what they are thinking!"

"Well, I just follow their body language. It's easier when you get used to it"

"Caw!" No human understands better than "Izumi"

"So cute! He said your name!"

"She. That's Lave"

"Ahh, sorry" Toga-senpai brought her hands together and bowed her head slightly, cringing a bit in an apology.

"Caw!"

"She says she thanks your apology"

"You really can tell! Tell me, tell me! What are all their names!?"

Izumi blinked, a bit surprised by that, and looked around the crows. They started getting closer, having deemed Toga-senpai safe enough to stay around in the cabin as they normally would.

"Ehm, ok, but first, before I forget, here, I got you some things you could use in the meantime so you aren't naked all the time"

Izumi opened the backpack, giving Toga-senpai the warm and cozy hiking clothes, meant to keep her warm when she wasn't close enough to the furnace.

"Hmmm, not very cute, but thank you!"

Toga-senpai accepted the clothes and put them on, along with a pair of mountain boots good for the snow and the forest (Izumi had cringed at the way Toga-senpai had to shapeshift in order to avoid walking around barefoot in the forest). Once she put them on, she twirled around in place.

"How do I look~?"

"Ehm, g-good?"

"Heh~ thanks~"

There was an uncomfortable silence afterwards that the crows didn't bother to break with any caw. Not even Urusai, that bastard.

"A-anyway, also got you some snacks and energy filling food in case you decide to stay here for a while lo-"

"Snacks!? Yes please, thank you!"

Both Toga-senpai and the crows go straight for the snacks, with Toga being the first one to reach them, practically tearing off the plastic, and shoving the food into her mouth. The crows tried taking it from her, cawing and flying around. Toga hissed at them when they got too close, showing her teeth when some cheeky crows tried pulling some of the snacks away from her.

Huh, she really must have been hungry. Blood really isn't the only thing she needs after all.

Not all crows were trying to take the snacks from Toga-senpai, the older ones just waiting and looking at Izumi, cawing at her and bouncing around, waiting their turn. Izumi smiled, and whistled high and loudly, bringing the attention back to herself. She pulled snacks she had gotten specifically for them, which they immediately accepted and flew straight at her to get. Well, some of them accepted them only after throwing back some hisses and repeating some unkind words to Toga-senpai. Thankfully she only blew them a raspberry.

Izumi smiled, and went to check the furnace. It still was burning, the white feathers she had fed to it at night still keeping it on. She then went to check inventory on the Black Bullets, and noted in her head that she needed to make some more. That picked Toga-senpai's interest, who left the wrappers of the snacks behind (had she finished them all already?) and went to Izumi's side, her mouth still full.

"Ihm bhen mehninph, uhg-" She choked a bit, then made a face and swallowed all the food in her mouth, gasping a bit after it finally went down. "Ahh! Oof, what I meant is, I was meaning to ask you, what's all those things?"

"These? Are the casts I use to make the Black Bullets."

"Wait, you make them!? I thought Giran gave them to you!"

"Oh, he wishes he got them for himself. No, I use Kuro's feathers to make them. Here, this one is Kuro"

The metallic feathered crow cawed at Toga, who waved back at her stunned.

"A metal crow?"

"Well, kinda. Only her feathers, beak and talons are metallic. Her quirk is Light Armor, and the metallic parts are made of a special alloy, super durable and very very light. I made the furnace to melt the feathers that fall out from her to make the bullets"

"You also made that thing!? Wow, Midoriya-chan, you are all sorts of amazing!"

"W-well, everyone can do it if they weren't so obsessed with quirks all the time…"

"Don't downplay yourself, girl! I heard that the Arts & Crafts Club was jealous of you, and with the things you showed me, I can't blame them! Wow!"

"Ah, uhm, thank you. A-anyway, I also got you this" She handed Toga the portable pillow. "So you can have something soft a-anywhere you want to stay. Ehm, also got you these" Izumi pulled the disposable syringes with a flick of her wrist, each of them in between her fingers, and put them on the table. "Don't know if you want them, but thought they may be useful?"

Toga eyed the disposable syringes, looking over at them.

"Hmmm, could be useful if I want a stealthy exit… Thanks for the pillow, though~"

"Hmmm, yeah… Also, ehm, how have you been doing… you know. Since it's been more than a month since it and…"

Izumi tried really hard to calm her heart and not act so embarrassed, but it was proving to be pretty hard at the moment. Toga-senapi seemed to get the message though, and cringed a bit, blowing a raspberry.

"Well, you know how it is. Was pretty bad, without tampons and all."

"I can imagine… w-well…" Izumi pulled out the last item she had gotten at the pharmacy, a box of tampons. Toga's face stretched in surprise, and accepted the box with a nod.

There was an awkward silence between them for a while, with neither of the girls knowing how to progress after that embarrassing exchange"

"H-hey, how did you do that with the syringes?" Toga-senpai eventually asked.

"How did I do what?"

"The thing of flicking them into your hand"

"Ah, you mean this?" She flicked her hand, showing one dart between each finger. "It's something I learnt for grabbing and throwing darts"

"It's pretty cool. I learned something similar~" Toga-senpai brought her hand down, and after moving it back up, somehow there was a knife on her hand. Izumi didn't even see her hide her knife in her new clothes, yet she managed to pull it out that fast.

"Wow, that's impressive. That's so much bigger than my darts. I usually have them on my hand before flicking them"

"Hehe~ thanks~ I usually hide it in the clothes of my transformations, but my own clothes work too~"

"I see…" Izumi checked the time. She had to leave soon or else she'd be late for the meeting with Giran. But there was just one question she needed to ask… Izumi had tried to dismiss it by telling herself it was fine… But the truth was, she didn't want this to be the last time she spoke to Toga-senpai. "Senpai… where are you going to stay…now?"

Toga tilted her head, confused, and gave Izumi a strange look akin to a cat who just heard something dumb.

"I-if it doesn't bother you me asking"

"No, that's fine, I asked a lot of things about this place… and actually, this place is pretty nice~ If you are ok with it, I could crash here sometimes~ it's definitely on my top one villain hideouts ranking from where I've slept these past few days~ The furnace and the company are the best part~"

"Ah-I see, that's good. Y-you can come here anytime you want."

"Great! Thanks Midoriya-chan~!"

Izumi smiled. She was happy Toga-senpai felt comfortable enough to think of the old cabin as a good enough place to sleep, instead of the streets or any other hideouts. Still, compared to yesterday, where they went on a hunt… She felt something strange.

Izumi liked when Toga-senpai called her by her villain name while on the job, yet here, right on the open, unmasked, she called her by her family name. It felt… weird, but she couldn't really put words into what exactly felt off.

"Also, speaking of this place… what's its name?"

"Name? Like, of the abandoned building?"

"Yep!"

"Uhhh, ehm, well, I've always called it abandoned building"

Toga's smile slowly morphed into an incredulous look.

"B-but before that it was a public cabin! Apparently it was used in the pre-quirk era for hikers to have a place to stay when there was bad weather!"

"And you call it… 'abandoned building'? And the name of the jet black crow being Kuro and the one that is loud… Urusai?"

"Y-yes? What's wrong with that?"

Toga-senpai giggled a bit. The mentioned crows glared at her, unsure whether they were being insulted.

"Nothing nothing~ the crows' names are cute~ Though we may need to think of a better name for the cabin! Your hideout can't possibly have a boring name like 'abandoned building'"

"Ahh, uhm, I see"

What followed were a few pitches for new names that Toga-senpai pitched her, before Izumi had to leave for the city for her meeting with Giran.

For a change, Izumi was the first one to arrive this time to their usual meeting spot in Konukoru, the bar. There were a few crows around her like always, and she had already ordered the hot chocolate she liked so much about this bar. And peanuts for the crows.

Eventually, Giran arrived at Izumi's table, just in time.

"Izumi-chan"

"Giran"

He ordered black coffee for himself, and they both enjoyed their drinks for a bit.

"Police are already investigating the case"

"Figured as much. I haven't heard news about it though"

"That's because he was a relatively unknown underground hero. The Hero Commission isn't going to scare the poor common people for such a meaningless death." He sighed, blowing some smoke from the cigarette. "Still, you were successful in covering your tracks, if they suspected you some news would had spread"

Giran acted sarcastically, but Izumi had dealt with him enough time to see through the facade.

"So you are still angry"

"More annoyed than angry. He was a good contact"

"Yeah, that's why you want compensation"

"I want compensation from you changing your mind on the last moment only because the target ended up being a classmate of yours"

"Senpai wasn't my classmate, she was an uppclassmate"

"That's not the point and you know it! You can't flip on a case like that ever again"

Izumi narrowed her eyes at Giran, bringing the cup of chocolate to her lips. She didn't break eye contact with him, letting time pass and making him wait for her response.

"Don't act like you don't stretch thin the limits of our agreement and payment every time, Giran. I'll accept and refuse any job I goddamn want"

He clicked his tongue, glaring at her but not arguing with her. He looked around, to the crows around the bar.

"But I agree it was unprofessional of me to change my mind while in the job" Giran smirked.

"So you agree that a compensation is in or-"

"But" She interrupted him "that doesn't mean you can accept another job where we don't know the target's name. I don't want to repeat this situation ever again"

Giran crossed his arms and nodded.

"Yeah, that I agree. Either way, the loss of such a prolific contact is still bad for my business"

Izumi sighed, rolling her eyes and putting the cup back on its plate in the table.

"Yes, I understand. What kind of compensation were you thinking of?"

Giran's smirk grew even wider, and he pointed at Izumi with the hand still holding his cigarette.

"I want your crows to become part of my information network, and replace the source of confidential intel that I would have gathered thanks to Bonerush~"

Izumi blinked a few times in surprise. That…wasn't what she was expecting. At all.

She narrowed her eyes, and locked in Giran, steeling herself and regaining her focus completely on him.

"I can't accept those terms, Giran. You know this. They aren't 'mine' to decide that for them"

"Chill~ I know, I know… but~ well, you can make them agree to to this~"

"I can't make them agree on anything I want. They have their own desires and wills different from my own. I can't tell them to do something they don't want to"

"Well, that's too bad." Giran shrugged. "Oh, don't give me such a rude look, you knew what the consequences would be from interfering with my other business"

"And I told you over the phone to not get ahold of yourself and demand more than you hold-"

"Caw!" Wuji cawed, scaring a few customers from another table at the terrace.

Izumi looked at him, straight at his only eye.

All have to discuss.

"You are considering it?"

"Oh, it is? Always knew you were smart, Scarface~"

Wuji merely cawed as other crows got closer, looking at Izumi with determined faces.

Not decide on your own.

All discuss it.

We are a team.

We are all "karasu"

Izumi thought about it for a moment. They were right, it wasn't her place to outward deny it if they wanted to think it over.

They were starting to get some looks, with people looking at the crows with a bit of apprehension. Izumi whistled, giving in. She called for Hattori, who flew from the tree she was on unto Izumi's armchair.

"Tell the rest, we'll meet you all at the Hunter Cabin. Oh, and also tell my- uhm, associate"

She cawed and flew off, with the rest of the crows following after and flying off. One of the clients at another table looked at Izumi with a weird look on his face, but quickly looked away once she glared at him.

"Hunter Cabin?"

Izumi looked at Giran, but felt embarrassed and looked away quickly.

"Just… the abandoned building."

"Oh, you finally put a good name to that place. Goood, good"

"... Let's just get going"

"Sure thing~ Should I be concerned about this 'associate' of yours? Don't go ignoring poor old me now~"

"Shut up. No, there's nothing you need to worry about"

She sighed and paid for her order when a waiter approached them, with Giran doing the same, and they got up on their way to the Hunter Cabin, crows flying up ahead.

"Yooo~! It's handler-san~!" Toga greeted from the entrance of the cabin, lots of crows surrounding her and the building.

"Giran-sama is good enough, sweetie~"

"Pffff, you wish~"

Toga giggled but Giran knew better from the glint of her eye that he shouldn't tease her, his years of experience paying off. He turned to look at Izumi.

"So this is your associate? She's at least covered this time. Never expected you to make friends that quick"

"Wh-what!?" Izumi blushed, losing his cool momentarily. "We ar-"

"Or were you friends before? You come from the same school as Izumi-chan, right?"

"Yep, yep~ But we didn't really talk to each other at school~"

"I see~ pretty interesting~ to think you'd invite a stranger to your base~ Did you finally gave it a proper name because of that?"

"Oh, actually, I helped Midoriya-chan with that!"

"You did? I should have guessed, Izumi-chan really does struggle with naming things. She's always too literal~"

"Ok, enough" Izumi kicked Giran on the back of his legs. She hid her face on her coat, while she worked to calm her heart to erase her blush. "Let's get inside already"

"Oh yeah! Midoriya-chan, some huuuuuge crows got inside. I assumed they were your friends since the rest of the crows seemed fine with it"

"Yeah, they are, don't worry, they won't disturb you as long as you don't annoy them"

Giran whistled, making some crows caw, annoyed.

"The big boys are here? This is bound to be interesting~ Finally graced with the famous council~"

Izumi sighed again and walked past Giran, getting inside the cabin, with Toga giggling and following behind her. Giran looked around at the crows, and blew off smoke from the cigarette, taking it out of his hand.

The butt was still lit, so they'd get mad if he just threw it away or just stomped on it to the ground, so he looked around for a familiar face. Seeming to notice what he was looking for, Shiro cawed, and flew close to Giran, snapping the cigarette in his beak, and swallowing it, disposing of it as fuel for him.

With nothing else left to do, Giran got inside the cabin. There, waiting were the council of elders, the oldest crows and ravens of the murder, and possibly, all of Japan.

"Pleased to finally meet you all, your blacknesses~" Giran bowed, mockingly.

"Caw! Do, not, mock, us, schemer" The largest raven said, surprising Giran over how coherent its speech was.

"Huh, that's surprising. Didn't expect you to actually speak"

"Do you want me to kick you again?" Izumi growled at him, along with the rest of the younger crows. "What do you think I was doing when talking to them? A one way conversation?"

"Honestly, a bit, yeah. You look pretty crazy speaking to them as if you understand them"

The old ravens cawed again, silencing every other crow and Izumi. They looked at each other, and then, the large crow spoke again.

"Murder, different, than, humanity. But, not, ignorant. Murder, learn, and, understand, more, than, you, think, schemer"

"Huh, alright, got it" He looked around, seeing the rest of the old crows and ravens. "Do you speak for all of them?" He finally said to the bigger raven.

"At, this, time, yes"

"May I know your name?"

"Caw! Yami"

Giran turned his head towards Izumi with a deadpan expression.

"Did you name him as well?"

A few ravens cawed, and Izumi smiled, kicking Giran on his leg again.

"Ah! Ok, ok, got it, geez"

"Make, your, demand, schemer"

"Alright, well, dunno if you know this already, but your protege Izumi here cost me quite a bit recently. Went against her word to cancel a job to terminate vampire over here, nothing personal, kid"

"Didn't take it personally" Toga eyed Izumi after that, who just kept looking forward to the council and Giran.

"So, she then went and killed the man who ordered blondie's death-"

"We both hunted him down" Izumi corrected.

"Spilling his blood felt so good~" Toga giggled, blushing a bit, but still sneaking a look at Izumi.

Oji-san, and the rest of the elders looked around at the humans, and the rest of the crows.

"Well, anyway." Giran continued. "His death greatly affected me, as he was a source of information, and Izumi here promised to be compensated for that loss. So, that compensation would be to have you support me and my network of information from now on"

The elders looked at each other, cawing and sneaking glances at Giran. Izumi watched them discuss in silence. The cabin felt a little crowded, with so many crows and two extra humans, but they all respected the elders and let them discuss in silence.

There were Wuji, Shiro, Kuro, Gorogoro, Urusai, Hattori, Chīkuchi, Lave and many more present. There haven't been as many crows together since Izumi had declared herself as Karasu, officially becoming another crow of the murder, and becoming a full fledged hunter.

Oji-san kept taking glances at Izumi, and after a while, cawed to bring attention to himself.

Green Chick. What do you think of this?

Izumi felt a little taken aback. Was he asking her? But such a decision wasn't meant for her to decide, she was still young compared to her time with the crows. The elders knew better, they should be the ones that make the important decisions.

"Caw!" Don't underestimate yourself. It may be short for you, but for us, it was a long time. So, trust us the elders in trusting you.

Izumi blinked. She wasn't the only one that could read their body language, and Oji-san knew her pretty well. Along with Wuji, they were the the first crows she met, and had seen her go through quite a bit and growing into the young hunter she was now.

Wuji was nothing but a chick then, but he was now an adult, and Oji-san had shortly turned into the oldest of the crows. She swallowed her doubts, and spoke up.

"I think…" Giran and Toga turned to look at her, not realizing she was having a conversation with the crows "...that Giran is overstepping himself. I do owe him, yes, but you don't. It has nothing to do with you. You don't have to accept on my behalf"

The whole murder started cawing, raising their voices over each other, making it impossible even for Izumi to tell what they were saying. Oji-san cawed loudly, beating his wings in place, making the rest shut up.

Green Chick, it has to do with us. You are us. You are "Karasu. We, Karasu" You owe "schemer", we owe him too. It is no problem for us. You aren't a chick anymore. You are Green Crow.

Izumi clenched her jaw shut, and felt a lump on her throat. She controlled herself, refusing to show emotion in front of Giran and Toga-senpai. She sighed, composing herself, hearing her heartbeat slow down and be nice and steady.

She nodded to Oji-san, and the rest of the council, but there was much more meaning on it than just a nod.

I understand, is that the opinion of the council?

Her answer were caws of agreement, with a few of the crows around the cabin hopping in place from excitement, having to be calmed down by the older ones. Oji-san cawed.

We will then begin to share any information we deem important with the schemer, or anything he requests. Of course, Yami or Urusai, he pointed at them with his beak, can't always be there to explain to him what we see. And he can't understand us. So you'll be the mediator between us.

"Yo, care to catch the rest of us? We don't all speak bird" Giran said. "How was that even a conversation? He just said a few words, the rest was just looking around"

"Dunno, but it does look pretty cool, it's like a secret language!" Toga chirped up, cutting into Giran's annoyance.

"We've come to an agreement" Izumi said, looking at Giran.

"You did? But you just explained the situation and nothing else"

"Did you forget your conversation with Yami? There's more ways for us to speak to each other than words"

He rolled his eyes while Toga giggled in the background. Urusai felt bold enough to go and land on top of her head. Toga looked up, but didn't try taking him off of her.

"Ok, then I guess they'll be my new informants~"

"Well, about that…" Izumi couldn't help but smirk a bit, which already told Giran there was a catch.

"Communication, may, be, hard. Izumi, mediator, between, us" Yami cawed, setting up the terms.

Giran made a face, then shrugged and smirked.

"Yeah, figured that would be the case"

"You seem… to be taking it better than expected" Izumi said, taken aback by his lack of complaints and blatant acceptance.

"Well, when most of my experience with crows is one way conversations I figured you'd be necessary as a translator. I was going in with that in mind from the beginning"

"So… you don't have a problem with me being basically the main entry to the information network you want?"

"Well, the deal with Bonerush was pretty good for me, I could get anything I wanted basically for free because of all the dirt I got from him"

Some of the crows growled while Toga flashed her teeth at him.

"But, well, he was also the man all the information passed through, so it's not that big of a difference really. You are just more trustworthy than him, and I have nothing to gain from antagonizing you. So yeah, I'm alright with you being in charge of giving me the information~"

"I see… thanks for the vote of confidence"

"Anytime, princess~"

Izumi clicked her tongue, and Toga couldn't help but snicker at that.

"I do expect full exclusivity on the information though~ can't get much use of it if it gets leaked somewhere else~"

Izumi sighed and rolled her eyes.

"Relax, Giran, you have the exclusivity. It's not like I intend to get in contact with anyone else in the underground. I've seen the place, don't want to get closer to half that scum"

"Ow~ but what about me~?" Toga cooed, making a puppy face.

"Well, you are different, Toga-senpai. I've yet to find any other villain I respect"

"Yey~!" She reached for Izumi and wrapped her in a hug.

Giran snorted after seeing Izumi's frozen, pitch red face. Some crows cawed, laughing while Izumi tried to get out of Toga's bear hug, Urusai still on top of Toga's head, watching it all unfold and ignoring Izumi's cries for help.

"Caw! Caw!"

Every crow turned to the window, from which another crow flew by and landed close to Izumi, who finally managed to get free of Toga, who just kept giggling.

Problem. Intruder in our turf.

Izumi's pupils thinned while all the crows tensed. Toga and Giran noticed the change and looked around.

"Hey, what's the big deal? Did somebody die?"

"We have an intruder" Izumi said, then whistled, most of the crows flying off and going through the window one by one, cawing and spreading out.

"An intruder? Couldn't it just be someone hiking?" Giran said, looking around as just only a few crows stayed in the cabin, the previously swarm of black being reduced to just four crows.

"Unlikely. Keiko made it clear it was an intruder. No hiker is an intruder" Izumi went to the casts, and took three Black Arrows that she had welded. "No one trespasses on my territory"

"You have such a cute look on your face Midoriya-chan~ Or should I call you Karasu-chan right now~?" Toga said, her grin spreading wider on her face and her blush growing bigger.

"Now it's not the time, senpai. I'm going for a hunt. Stay here. You too, Giran"

"Don't have to tell me twice" He sat down on the chair, and pulled out a cigarette, not reacting to a crow cawing at him and lighting it up anyway.

Toga shook her head though.

"You said I was free to leave whenever I wanted, right? Then I'm going too"

Izumi thought it over for a moment. This wasn't the time nor place for a discussion.

"Alright, do what you want, but this is still my territory. I deal with the intruder myself"

"Sure thing~ Are you going to get your gun?"

"I'm out of Black Bullets, so I'm using these" The hunter raised the Black Arrows in her hand, then turned for the door, with Toga following behind her.

They moved quickly and swiftly thanks to their warm clothes. Izumi was glad to find Himiko being able to swiftly and silently move, even with the new clothes she was in and in a completely new environment she wasn't used to yet.

It had taken years for her to be able to move like this through the forest without making any sound and keeping stealth. Izumi didn't forget to check the sky, following the directions of the crows.

It started snowing, but neither Izumi nor Himiko complained. A group of crows including Wuji flew closer to them, carrying something. Himiko was about to say something, but Izumi raised a hand to keep her quiet.

The crows gave their package to Izumi, who flexed it by quickly thrusting her hand forward while holding it. It snapped and opened, revealing her bow, B-tip. Izumi nodded and strapped the bow around herself, the strings on her chest and the limbs and grip on her back.

Izumi nodded and gave the arrows to the crows. She whistled in a way imitating chirps, and Himiko's eyes widened when the crows flew away with the arrows, seemingly struggling a bit from the weight.

Izumi looked at Himiko and pointed to move ahead using her chin. A thin layer of snow covered the grass on their way, and they started slowing down to make less noise. Himiko loved seeing Izumi out on a hunt without the helmet this time, and just how serious and focused she was.

It was the same girl that tried to hide her blush when getting embarrassed back at the cabin. Himiko loved how both of those were part of her, both normal reactions and the looks of a seasoned hunter.

She truly felt validated after seeing Izumi behave and think so similarly to her. And also, going out with her for a hunt where they had to stalk their prey… it was just so much fun for her!

Izumi looked up and saw some crows on a nearby branch on a tree. Shiro got closer, flying silently to the ground and hopping in the snow close to Izumi.

Intruder is hunter.

Izumi blinked looked up, and then back to Shiro, tilting her head.

You sure?

Yes.

Izumi pointed up, and circled her finger on the air. Shiro flew away and the rest of the crows in the trees around them flew off, to tell the rest.

Himiko watched the exchange in silence, understanding that something was going on, and making sure to lower her body close to the ground.

Wuji flew down and gave Izumi back a Black Arrow, who she took and put on her bow, after unstrapping it from her chest.

Izumi walked slowly and silently, not making any sound, and lowered her body to hide behind a tree. She signed Toga, bringing her fingers to her lips, and then over her eyes casting a shadow before bringing her palm down.

Toga smiled, understanding the message. She lowered her body even more, going as far to crawl on all fours like a cat, to also hide, keeping her body low so it was harder to notice her. Himiko then hid behind some bushes, and took out the knife from her sleeve, making sure that light didn't reflect on it.

Izumi tensed the arrow on the bow, while hearing the familiar flaps of crows getting near their spot. Not long after that, Himiko started hearing footsteps against the snow, and looked at Izumi.

Izumi nodded, understanding that the intruder was close, before a crow flew close to tell her the same thing.

Toga-senpai's senses are on another level if she could notice before Hattori could tell me.

The footsteps got loud enough that Izumi could hear them without any problem now. Himiko was itching to get out of the bush and jump the intruder, but Izumi kept shaking her face when Himiko looked at her looking for her approval.

They felt the intruder walk past them, and stalked him, following him never from less than 50 meters apart. Izumi managed to glimpse a few looks at him, and he was definitely a hunter. The way he moved along, watching his feet and with his left hand over his right, always on edge told her as much.

It was good that Keiko had warned her, because if she didn't expect an intruder, it may have been too late when she realized. Still, she could swear she had seen that bald man before. The hunter untensened her bow, and took out her phone, snapping a picture and quickly sending it to Giran.

"You know who this is?"

Izumi pointed at the crows to keep watch on him, while Himiko sneaked closer, distributing her weight on all four limbs to make less sound.

It didn't take long for Giran to answer, and Izumi's phone received his message without making a sound.

"Holy crap, that's Bullseye!"

"Come here"

"On it"

Izumi put the phone back, and stalked closer, tensing the arrow on B-tip again. Whatever another hunter of the Order was doing in her territory couldn't be good. Giran had told him that this Bullseye had a problem with the amount of jobs from the SASC that she had taken, and she couldn't care less about his problems.

But getting on her hunting turf? She couldn't allow that. Yes, as Karasu she had definitely violated other hunter's turfs, but in her defense, she didn't get caught, and she was after prey they didn't go after anymore.

Izumi signaled some crows to go fetch Giran and tell him the way, while she, Himiko and the rest of dozens of crows around the forest stalking this fool kept at it.

Izumi signaled the crows, whistling again with a birdlike chirp. The bald hunter immediately turned, left hand on his right, but was distracted when the crows started to caw near him. He turned multiple times, as Izumi and Himiko moved away, closing in and getting height over him.

Himiko crawled like a jaguar, while Izumi's eyes never left the hunter, the tip of her arrow always pointing at him. A crow got closer to him, cawing at him and acting like a nuisance.

It was the speciality of crows, annoy and anger others to gain an opening. Izumi gained the perfect spot behind some trees, higher than Bullseye while he tried to shoo away the crow.

Izumi felt Oji-san land beside her, and purred softly. Without leaving Bulseye from her sight, she nodded, quieting her heart.

Thump…..thump…..

She released the arrow, who flew over the cold winter air and graced Bullseye's ear. He screamed and turned away, his right hand turning into a gun and firing where Izumi had been.

She had dropped to the ground as soon as she had released the arrow, but his aim was awful, and she could have easily avoided every bullet had she stayed completely still.

"Easy, Bullseye"

Giran's voice echoed through the forest, thanks to Urusai's quirk amplifying his voice. Bullseye stopped and looked around, his hand-gun still transformed and smoke coming from its barrel.

Transformation type. Easy trigger, looking at the damage of the trees… Similar caliber as a regular police S&W M460… The Nemean Vest will stop a thousand of those before they reach me.

Izumi repositioned herself, while she catched a glimpse of Himiko doing the same from the corner of her eye. A crow flew close to her and gave her the second Black Arrow. She had timed her shot with the signal she got Oji-san of Giran getting close, and pointed the arrow directly at Bullseye.

The young hunter let her heartbeat resume as she took slow breaths. Bullseye meanwhile was full out panicking, still looking around, hand-gun pointing everywhere, clearly spooked over having been stalked without realizing it. Izumi assumed he must feel like prey right now. Her prey.

"Hey, Bullseye"

"You!"

Bullseye pointed his hand to Giran.

"You really think that's wise, big boy? You know in whose territory you are right now"

"Where is she!?"

Izumi made a signal with her elbow, and briefly looked at Oji-san. She mouthed silently.

"Bring me Urusai"

Oji-san took off.

"Dunno, around. This is her turf, and you know it. Now lower your hand before she loses her patience"

He looked back, seeing how the arrow that had graced him had gone completely through the tree on his back, and ought to be somewhere behind it. Clicking his tongue, he pulled his hands back and raised them, turning his right hand back.

"Good boy. Now you know the rules. You shouldn't be here on her territory. What exactly were you trying to do"

He snarled and didn't respond, looking away.

"Don't fool yourself, lapdog, I only came because I had business with tha SASC, and it so happens that their headquarters is close to Diana's turf"

"That doesn't explain what you are doing in my forest"

Izumi's voiced echoed around, Urusai being right on the arm holding the bow, acting as an amplifier for Izumi, spreading her voice around. Bullseye looked around, trying to locate the source, but Urusai was spreading her voice around him, distorting it so he couldn't tell its origin.

"Tsk, just where the fuck are you!? You won't even show yourself here!?"

"I don't owe you anything. You are trespassing. Leave"

"Just who do you think you a-"

Another arrow flew past him, gracing his crotch and going in between his legs, burying itself deep into the soil.

"You know the rules of the Order. No interfering with other hunts. No getting into other hunter's territory"

Izumi took the chance that last arrow got her of him looking around everywhere to change her position, getting the last arrow from another crow. That would be the last. There would be no more warnings.

"You heard the boss, Bullseye. You are lucky she didn't say anything about reporting this to the Order. I think they wouldn't be happy about you so willingly getting into another hunter's territory"

Bullseye gulped down, cold sweat running on his bald head despite the chill air. He scoffed and turned around.

"Wha-whatever! You aren't worth my time! I'll leave then if that's what you want!"

Izumi watched him walk away, her arrow always pointing at him until he was out of range. She whistled and told some crows to continue tailing him to make sure he left. She then got out of her hiding spot and went to meet Giran, Himiko standing up and doing the same.

"That was so cool, Midoriya-chan! He was shitting himself!"

"Thanks for that graphic image. Totally needed it" Giran deadpanned while lighting a cigarette. "You got me scared for a second though~ Thought you'd actually let him shoot me"

"We just made a new deal, why would I do that?"

"Just admit you were worried for little old me~"

"I wouldn't lie like that"

"Ha! Still, he got some balls for showing up here"

"I agree, he was way too comfortable. Urusai!" The crow flew to Izumi's extended wrist. "When he gets out of the forest, send him a message: 'Next time there won't be warning shots'"

"Caw!"

He flew off, to join the rest of the crows tailing him.

"I know I said you wouldn't tell the Order, but wanna do it anyway?"

"No. I don't want to deal with those rotting geezers. Besides, weren't you mad about me "breaking a promise"?" Izumi made sure to emphasize that by making air quotes with her hands

"Well, yeah, but that's when you went back on a deal made with me~"

Izumi smiled, and kicked Giran on the back of his legs.

"Ahh! Fuck, I hope that doesn't become common"

"Don't give me more reasons then"

Himiko giggled, a few crows looking at them from behind her.

"You two guys are pretty funny, you know~?"

"Of course I am~ every villain worth their shit knows I'm the best at parties~"

"Only if they hire you as a clown. Besides, Gentle Criminal is much more entertaining that you would ever be~"

Izumi turned around, walking back to the Hunter Cabin, with Himiko following her, giggling and laughing still.

"Gentle Criminal? Who is that guy? Hey! Izumi! How do you know a villain that I don't! Oi! Remember our information deal!"

For some reason, Izumi didn't really feel like slowing down her breath to calm her heart and stop the smile that curved her lips.

Oji-san cawed, satisfied, and flew along back into the Nest.