Izuku POV
The man before me was not a Hero. As his name suggested, Murder Cunt had little interest in Heroics. His solution to crime was to remove it at the source. Permanently.
He was the pariah of the international Hero community as a result. Many wished for him to be arrested, or at the very least barred from attending international events. The problem is that his popularity within Oceania is simply too high to not have him as a representative. While he is not an official Hero, if he were to be placed on the Australian rankings he would place easily within the top three, if not higher.
He was generally seen as a relatable and reliable figure by the Australian people. They saw him as someone who was honest and genuinely tried to do the best for his people. The fact he didn't care about what international Heroes said was seen as a bonus, and a sign that he was truly motivated purely by his own goodwill.
His quirk was a bit of an enigma. It didn't have an official name and didn't seem to have any known limits. Whatever it was, it made him extremely durable and gave him the ability to kill triple S-rated villains with ease. My best guess is that it had something to do with energy manipulation, although he would never bother to confirm any of my theories.
I might as well take this rare opportunity to ask him some simple questions.
"If you don't mind me asking, what is your opinion on the Hero ranking system that is used by many nations?"
He doesn't miss a beat.
"Complete bullshit. A real Hero does what he does because that's what he believes in. If you need some stupid number to give you motivation then you're pathetic and a failure. I was just a bloke who got fed up with criminals running the place. Anyone can do what I did if they really wanted to."
It was an interesting perspective on the way Heroes treat the numerical part of the ranking system. Many Heroes based their entire personality around their rankings, often to the detriment of others. Heroes like Endeavour would do anything to get even a single spot higher. There is a reason the Commission had to cover up the actions of so many Heroes for so many years. Basic morals went out the window when strength ruled all.
Unfortunately, Heroics is an industry that very much attracts those who crave attention and fame. The common belief these days is that glory hounds are good for civilian morale. The idea was that by staying in the spotlight, the public would always see their victories. Having recognisable and reliable protectors helped the public stay calm.
I found that train of thought dubious at best. I wonder what the Australian man before me would think?
"Many say that the Hero ranking system is good for public morale. People enjoy the interactivity that the vote-based ranking system provides. Talk shows and internet forums spend countless hours just talking over which Hero makes them feel the safest. Isn't keeping the public calm and complacent worth something?"
He takes a long scull of his beer before replying
He hands me a second beer that he had in his back pocket. I do the logical thing and delegate the problem by handing it to Eva. She gives me an annoyed look. Murder Cunt either doesn't notice our interaction, or he simply doesn't care. He promptly continues onto the second half of his rant.
"Why should the public be kept calm? They should be mad when they see a villain murdering people. They should step up and do something about it themselves. Telling them to simply not worry about it and stay complacent just keeps the shitball rolling. Villains are a cancer on society and need to be cut out before they destroy it.."
To be honest, his perspective wasn't entirely unfair. Hero society in Japan has bred a complacency that has caused more problems than it has solved. People are comfortable with All might simply doing everything. Even the top-rated Heroes are always reliant on All might saving the day if things ever get too scary.
It's a system that rests on the shoulders of one man.
"What is your opinion on the concept of a Symbol of Peace?"
He gives me a grin.
"Talking about All might huh? Cool bloke, would love to have a beer with him. I'm sure he would hate me though."
He looks vaguely offended for a moment before continuing.
"Anyway, I think the concept is bullshit and was created by lazy people so they have an excuse not to get off their arse. All it takes is one bloke taking out All might or Star and Stripe and suddenly Hero Society is down the shitter! Making everything so top-heavy is a massive mistake. Keeping things decentralised is always good for keeping shit going."
Very succulent. I offer him a handshake.
"It was nice meeting you, sir."
He shakes my hand. I try to subtly probe at his quirk but it feels like I'm trying to poke a brick wall. Whatever his quirk is, it makes him resistant to All for One. There is clearly far more going on there than meets the eye.
He lets go of my hand and does a lazy salute.
"It's good talking to a right proper kid like yourself. You're on the right track… whoever you are. Also remember, taxes are bullshit, and fuck the government."
He walks off without any further preamble. I realise now that he never actually asked for my name. Huh. It was definitely an interesting conversation though. I think he gave me a lot to think about, especially about the weakness of Hero society. Perhaps something worth exploiting in the future…
I turn my attention back to the topic at hand.
"So, how about lunch?"
Eva grabs my hand and starts pulling me toward a nearby burger joint.
"I require sustenance."
Izuku POV, ten minutes later
Eva's meal makes me shudder. Her "triple-super-plus-ultra I-island special" is truly something to behold. Eating that much food in one sitting should not be physically possible. Where do all the calories go?
She stretches her arms overhead. Ah. That explains things.
The two of us eat our meals in peace. Eva manages to somehow finish before me and even ends up ordering seconds. My theory of genetic engineering grows stronger by the day. After finishing her second meal she wipes her hands on a napkin an addresses me.
"Akatani. Would you like to see the Militech expo? They have a section on cybersecurity."
I practically leap to my feet.
"Where?"
She grasps my hand before leading me on another adventure.
Momo POV, five hours later
I poke at my plate. I-island really was an amazing place. But, spending an entire day talking to businessmen and inventors is… tiring. Conversing with the CEO of Detnerat felt like navigating a minefield. The man was silver-tongued and quick to praise, but there was always an ulterior motive at play.
Detnerat was making clear moves to acquire Feel Good INC. I suspect he is attempting to curry favour with his opposition in the hopes of us not contacting the commissioner. Yaoyorozu Industries could easily argue that the merger is an attempt at monopolisation, and violates Japanese market restrictions.
Why is the drama always so neverending?
Business negotiations nonstop for months on end. Days spent at some exorbitant hotel just so I can listen in on some useless meeting. Every waking second of my life was dedicated to something I had zero passion for.
My dream of becoming a Hero was feeling more and more far-fetched by the day. Father and Mother would support me no matter what, but could I truly bring myself to leave the company without an heiress? It's all so stressful. I just wish I had someone to confide with. The last time I met another person my age would have been the heiress of Toha Heavy Industries.
She was a vicious little bitch. A manipulative little sociopath just like her father. Unlike Heroics, business has no requirement for basic morals.
God, I feel miserable.
I take a deep breath and scan my surroundings. There's a balcony exit across the room. Perhaps I should enjoy some of the cool night air?
I climb to my feet and make my way to the balcony. Once outside I spot a boy and a girl standing side by side on the balcony. While I cannot see their faces due to them facing away, I'm surprised to find that they seem to be rather young.
The girl is… big. She's tall, possessing a muscular physique and remarkably plush figure. She's clearly the trophy wife for the boy. I disregard the irrelevant woman from my thoughts.
The boy takes notice of me and turns from the banister to face me. I immediately note his exceptional beauty. Perhaps he was the trophy husband, and I misinterpreted things initially?
He gives me a small wave before addressing me in Japanese.
"Hello, I am Akatani Mikumo. It is nice to meet you."
His companion gives me a small bow before speaking.
"Greetings. I am Lilly Rose."
She speaks with zero emotion or tone. I raise my head and address the two evenly.
"Hello, I am Momo Yaoyorozu. Have you been enjoying your evening?"
The boy gives me an earnest smile. It's a very pretty smile. He is either genuine in his emotions or is an exceptionally good actor.
"I am doing well, thank you. We were just having dinner. It's exhausting having to spend so much time exploring the expos. I'm sure you understand, I can't imagine being in such high demand is enjoyable. I imagine you have had nothing but business talks all day."
He's surprisingly perceptive. Perhaps he can personally relate? His formal wear and slim stature would imply that he is in business rather than Heroics. The girl has the size and stature of a Hero, although I am unable to recognise her. Perhaps I should question them on my suspicions.
"If you do not mind me asking, do you two work in the support industry?"
The girl is as stoic as always, but a slight flicker crosses the boy's expression. Anyone less perceptive would have missed it. The girl makes a subtle movement to prompt the boy to speak. Perhaps he is taking queues from her?
He collects his thoughts and continues.
"Well, both of us work in business. I would speak further, but I cannot talk of our work without strict NDAs involved. All I can say is that Lilly and I work at the same company."
The answer is obvious. They are arms dealers. The industry was bloody and immoral, but there is little point in casting judgment. Everyone in Heroics had some degree of blood on their hands. Yaoyorozu Industries had its own share of scandals, some of which involved coverups.
I note that the two are alone and that there are no parental figures nearby of similar resemblance. Perhaps their parents did not wish to be at I-island in person. Arms dealers are not always welcome among Heroes. I decide to hold that train of thought for the future and instead offer a more simplistic query.
"I am here on my own in order to represent Yaoyorozu Industries. Did your parents also send you to represent your business?"
The girl, Lilly, speaks this time.
"Affirmative. However, we are primarily here for our own enjoyment. We are having dinner presently as we wished to have a break from work. I presume that you are also doing the same?"
She is clearly very blunt, but also very sharp. I judged her for her appearance in the exact same way that many do when judging me. I feel a pang of shame at that realisation.
"Well… my day has admittedly been rather exhausting. Yaoyorozu Industries has many partners, and meeting with them all takes quite some time. I'm sure you can relate."
There's a pregnant pause. Out of nowhere Mikumo suddenly lets out a gasp.
"I have an idea! I saw an arcade on the way here, the three of us should have a go and play some games! I think we could all use some downtime, wouldn't you agree?"
Normally I would refuse immediately, but there was something about his excitement that makes me pause. There is a degree of sincerity in his emotions that cannot be replicated by a sociopath.
I smile.
"I would like that, thank you."
I remain apprehensive but I ultimately decide to have some faith in the two. The three of us pay for our bills at the counter before leaving the restaurant. I let the boy, Mikumo, begin leading us to our destination.
I hum to myself as I match their walking pace.
"Mikumo and Lilly, how old are you? I am fifteen myself and will be sitting my exams for high school at the end of this year."
Mikumo beams.
"We are also fifteen! Although, we will not be furthering our education. We tested out on core subjects some time ago. Private tutors are marvelous."
Wait, what?
"I'm sorry, you said that you tested out?"
He nods.
"Correct! We were on an accelerated learning curve that focused purely on the core curriculum. Our knowledge of math and science is of third-year high school, but we know nothing of art or social science."
So instead of learning a full curriculum, they decided to simply accelerate their learning by focusing on primary subjects. It's a logical decision. I immediately find myself regretting not doing the same. Then again, maybe they are missing some important knowledge.
Were languages a core subject? Depending on how focused their learning was, they may not have learned English. Since I have been meaning to find someone I can practice with, I might as well see how much they know. My own English is enough to hold a conversation but not much more.
I clear my throat and address them in English.
"Hello. I am Momo Yaoyorozu. I am from Japan. It is nice to meet you."
He responds without missing a beat.
"It's nice to meet you Momo! I'm Akatani and I'm also Japanese myself, although I can't clarify exactly where I'm from."
Lilly chimes in as well.
"I am Lilly. I am also from Japan. Akatani and I work together in our business."
Honestly, I can't help but be impressed. Mikumo's English is spoken with perfect fluency and is clearly leagues above my own. Lilly also seems to be fluent, although her lack of pitch or tone is a bit uncomfortable to listen to.
I continue speaking in English as I try to match the correct speaking pace.
"Thank you for helping me learn my English. Many people in Japan are not good at English."
Mikumo (or should I think of him as Akatani?) gives a nod. He goes to speak before suddenly pausing. He gives me a friendly smirk.
"In-du-ba-tih-lee."
I blink.
"I do not know that word."
He switches back to Japanese in order to explain.
"It's a rather formal word that isn't used much in English. It means roughly to say that something is 'true beyond doubt'. For example, if someone said 'The sky is blue.' you could respond with 'Indubitably.' It's generally regarded as a bit of an exotic word."
I take a mental note to look up some of the more formal words in English in the coming weeks. After a bit more walking the three of us stop outside a building labeled "Arcade" in English.
Mikumo claps his hands together.
"So Yaoyorozu, what do you know about arcades?"
I blush.
"I must admit that I have never been to one, nor have I ever played any video games."
He grins.
"Great, then all of us will be learning together! I have no idea how any of this works, but I'm sure it will be a matter of simple deduction!"
I have to hold back a laugh. The way he is able to make a conversation lighthearted and fun is amazing. It's a refreshing experience when compared to what I'm used to.
Upon walking inside the building I'm suddenly struck by an array of neon lights. The arcade itself is fully automated, as expected of I-island. Mikumo flashes a black card at some sort of terminal and a recorded voice tells us we are now free to use whatever machines we wish.
The room is huge. There are countless machines and I couldn't name a single one. Mikumo whistles softly.
"What should we try first?"
I realise that they are now looking at me expectantly. I panic. How am I meant to respond?
"W-we can try… that one!"
I point to a random machine. It looks to have hand-sized balls that are meant to be thrown into a series of rings. There's a small hole in the centre that is designated with the highest numerical integer. The rest of the rings have increasingly smaller numbers as they travel further from the centre. It's a simple deduction to determine the purpose of the game.
Mikumo and I take our turns first and throw ten balls a piece.
We quickly discover that we are both terrible at arcade games. At one point Mikumo manages to throw a ball so poorly that it bounces up over the retaining wall. My mediocre score is almost double his own.
Then, it's Lilly's turn. I can't help but feel a little excitement at the prospect of seeing what she can do. Mikumo cups his hands even though she is standing maybe five metres away at most.
"Remember Lilly, don't throw it too hard!"
She proceeds to throw the ball with enough force for it to rebound off the wall with insane speed. She snatches it out of the air just before it would have smacked into Mikumo's skull. The boy gives her a thumbs up.
"Try a little less force next time, but good effort!"
Lilly responds in her usual monotone fashion.
"Oh. Okay."
She throws it softer this time and the ball lands within the confines of the game. Her next throw lands near the middle. The next throw is perfect. The rest of her throws all land dead centre of the machine in the smallest hole.
The machine echoes out "NEW HIGH SCORE" and shows her at the top of the leaderboard.
I blink.
"Does your quirk have something to do with agility or cognitive abilities?"
She shakes her head.
"No. I possess super strength and super durability. Nothing more."
That is… surprising. Clearly, she is somewhat more talented than I expected.
Momo POV, thirty minutes later
I take everything back. Lilly is a monster. There is no way a single person should be so good at everything. Especially with zero practice and such minimal effort! Her hand-eye coordination was superb, her reactivity was inhuman and her agility was beyond exceptional.
She must have constructed in a lab somewhere for the sole purpose of being the perfect gamer. I refuse to believe otherwise. That girl was built entirely differently from the average person.
Momo POV, one hour later
Spending time with Mikumo and Lilly is fun. I find myself rapidly growing to like the two. I really hope that we can spend more time together after this, or at least talk from time to time. I chew on my lip as I consider the possibility of offering to exchange phone numbers. Would they be offended? I don't have enough social experience to predict their responses.
Mikumo pokes me in the shoulder.
"Are you okay Yaoyorozu?"
Damnit, I might as well bite the bullet.
"W-would you two like to exchange phone numbers with me? I would enjoy being able to converse with the two of you in the future."
Mikumo hands me his phone without hesitation.
"That's a great idea! We haven't made a new friend in forever, this will be so much fun!"
The three of us exchange our numbers. I take back my phone and look at my two new contacts. I almost gasp when I spot that Mikumo labeled himself as a 'friend' on my phone.
A friend!
I've never had a friend before, let alone two! I resist the urge to cry tears of joy.
"Thank you. You two have no idea how much this means to me."
Lilly shrugs.
"It is of no effort. We enjoyed spending time with you. We merely wished to do so again."
This is going to be so much fun!
Izuku POV, one hour later
I step through the portal with Eva at my side. I stretch my arms overhead as I make my way into the kitchen. I spot Kurogiri subtly taking a beer away from Aki's side while she isn't looking. Hitoshi and her are watching some sort of movie on the TV and seem to be having a great time.
Kurogiri drops the beer into a portal before bowing toward me.
"Young Lord, how was your trip?"
I grin.
"Eva and I had lots of fun. We made a new friend, Momo Yaoyorozu. We exchanged numbers and plan to meet up later on."
"Your Father would be proud. Making such valuable contacts so effortlessly speaks highly of your charisma."
Kurogiri says such nice things. I need to spend more time with him sometime, I haven't been appreciating him enough. The mysterious servant gives us one final bow before walking through a portal. I make a mental note to talk to him more in the future.
I address the remaining two members of The Elite.
"I presume that you two had fun?"
Aki starts making wave-like hand gestures.
"We went to the water park on the other side of I island and it was SO fun!"
The what not?
"Wait, there was a water park?"
Aki and Hitoshi look devastated. Hitoshi climbs from his seat and walks over. He gives me a sad look and pats me on the shoulder.
"It's okay. Sometimes we all make mistakes. There is always time to make up for it in the future."
That is such a Hitoshi thing to say. Eva takes this opportunity to suddenly appear next to me and speak in her usual robotic voice.
"What is a water park?"
Hitoshi, thank god, answers before Aki does.
"It's an amusement park themed around water. So you have slides and pools, lots of stuff like that. Aki and I had lots of fun. She almost got us in trouble when- actually, don't worry about it. We should definitely take you to one sometime."
Eva ponders the concept for a few seconds before responding.
"I would like that. We can make it a team bonding activity."
Aki interrupts before anyone else can speak.
"Of course, but you should just go with Izuku! It'll be more fun that way!"
She winks and gives me a big thumbs-up. I have to resist the urge to physically cringe. She tries far too hard sometimes. Eva, of course, asks the obvious question.
"What would make it more fun."
"Well, you see-"
I interrupt as loudly as I possibly can.
"Time to go to bed! I will see you in the morning, we have a drug lab to burn so get a good night's rest."
I drag Eva with me before Aki can corrupt her any further.
