Angel: Something I need to point out moving forward is that there's this character named Locklock, but from the wiki, it's Rock Lock. In the actual dubbed episodes, they say Locklock, so that's the name I'm sticking with. I don't know if that's what the manga calls him since I haven't read it, but when I look it up, I get both names. Dubs are weird sometimes, huh? And I shouldn't care this much because I actually don't like him as a character, but I know people were going to correct me if I don't address it.
What do I think about Himiko Toga? She...terrifies me, and I would not wanna be in the same room as her. I feel like I don't need to elaborate on why. But at the same time, I do find her an interesting character, and she is my favorite from the League besides Twice. Her backstory is fucking tragic, my god...how will she and Izuka interact? Well, they already had a cat fight, even though Izuka did not know it was her. To be fair though, the two don't get much time to talk, not enough that I'd say Himiko is Izuka's enemy from the League. I think there is a small interaction in season 4, I'm tired as I'm editing this, so my memory sucks lol Why does Izuka call every hero Mr and Ms? Because that's just how she is with new people. It's not just every hero either, she was like this with Melissa from the movie too.
Speaking of Mr. Aizawa from desiree's last review, there is a scene in the next chapter that directly addresses his stance about Izuka currently. And I wouldn't worry about her surpassing her limit without using it, it's not like she wants to test it and sees what will happen. And it gets addressed in the second half of season 4 anyway.
Eijiro gave a surprised sound as he looked over his shoulder on his way to his work study. "Uh-Midoriya! Good morning," He smiled as he waved a hand. "Are you headed off to your work study too? Cool, so am I!"
"Yeah, I finally got called in again," He revealed with a small smile. "Feels like it's been forever. I wonder why they said not to wear our costumes, though," He looked down at his school uniform, which Eijiro was also dressed in.
"Oh! Good morning, guys!" Ochaco smiled as she was standing in the doorway of the building. Tsuyu was right next to her, and both girls were also in their school uniforms. "You going in today?"
"Yeah!" Izuku nodded at the two.
"Huh, so are we," Tsuyu commented in a bit of a skeptical way. "That's kinda weird."
"Hey. Us too!" Some heroes had come across them on their way over. "Wanna walk to the station together?"
"Ooh! Please!" Ochaco gushed a little. "I mean, if you don't mind."
"We appreciate it!" Izuku smiled towards them.
"What's with all the heroes?" Eijiro whispered to the green-haired boy, since the two heroes weren't the only ones they saw today. In fact, they had seen about a dozen or so.
And then all four had used their metro cards to go in the same direction, putting them off even more because they'd be separated at this point. "Wait, we're going the same way?" Izuku looked at them wide-eyed. "I thought you were working in Kansai."
"Usually, yeah, but I guess we're meeting someplace different today," Eijiro spoke, just as confused as Izuku was.
"What a coincidence. Us too," Tsuyu informed the two boys.
Everyone's on the same train Izuku thought to himself as it still hadn't hit them. Going to the same station. "This is kinda weird," He reiterated what Tsuyu said when they left their dorms.
Even when they got out of the train station, they were still heading on the same path. We're going in the same direction. Even turning at the same corner. Then they came across Tamaki, Mirio, and Nejire on their way there.
"Heyo!" Mirio greeted the four, to their shock.
The Big Three are all here? What in the world? What's going on?
The doors opened to where they would meet...and they came across not only their mentors, but other pro heroes. Even Mr. Aizawa and Gran Torino were there too. And Izuka was also there, looking very awkward because clearly, she wasn't supposed to be there... Izuku gasped upon seeing both his teacher and his mentor from the internship. Gran Torino? And Mr. Aizawa? The Dragoon Hero: Ryukyu. The BMI Hero: Fat Gum, Locklock, Kesagiri Man, and Mr. Brave. All these incredible people in the same room. From big shot pros to more minor, local heroes. This is amazing! Whatever's happening, it must be big...
"Mido?!" All four of the first-years yelped upon seeing her and she gave an awkward wave.
"Heh...hi..."
"But what are you doing here?" Izuku blinked at her in astonishment. "Aren't you supposed to be doing special classes?"
"Well..." She looked away while scratching her cheek.
"Mido!" The three all flinched, turning around to see Mr. Aizawa walking up to them. His hands were in his pockets as she gave a nervous look.
'Oh no, what'd I do now...?'
"Glad I caught you. You're gonna need to come with me. I already called ahead, you're excused from your classes today," He informed, confusing the three.
"Huh?" Izuka blinked in confusion, but she had a feeling that it had to be important for him to pull her out of her special classes.
"What?" Katsuki murmured a bit defensively.
"Uh?" Shoto stared at their teacher in a bit of bewilderment. "Does that mean her punishment is lifted?"
"No. Something...urgent has come to our attention, let's say," He glanced at the girl, who looked a bit alarmed. Considering he didn't mention yet what this was about, she could only assume it had something to do with Izuku. Which wouldn't be far off considering his actions in the past since coming to UA.
"Ah! Is this about my brother?" She looked up in a bit of panic. "Is he okay? W-what's going on?"
"He's fine," He waved a hand and then turned around. "Follow me and I'll explain," He walked off, leaving all of them very confused. Izuka then sighed in defeat, turning around to them with a small frown.
"Sorry, guys. I'll see you tomorrow," She then ran off without another word to follow the teacher. Katsuki and Shoto could only stare as they could speculate, but they had to get to their classes...
"And that's what happened. Mr. Aizawa told me to sit tight and to not cause any trouble..." She informed while rubbing the back of her neck. "But aren't you guys supposed to be in your work studies?" Izuka tilted her head in confusion.
"Well, yeah, but why would he pull you out of your classes?" Eijiro blinked down at her.
"Hey, what's the scoop? What's going on?" Nejire ran up to her mentor. "Talk to me, Ryukyu!" She wrapped her arms around the hero, who only smiled in return. "I mean, I know you said there's a meeting, but what's it about?"
"Patience, Nejire," Ryukyu tried to calm her down.
"You too, Mr. Aizawa?" Ochaco questioned as she and Tsuyu approached him.
"I'm confused. Why are you here?"
"I was tasked last minute for this thing, by order of Principal Nezu. He filled me in before I got here. But I think I've got a rough idea of what it's about. And why I specifically got called," He glanced over to Izuka, both girls blinking in confusion.
"You should too," Ryukyu looked over to her work-study students. "Remember what I told you, girls?"
"Students or not, you've already proved yourselves to be valuable assets. We may even have a role for you in a new case that's come up."
The two first-year girls looked at her wide-eyed before looking to each other. It's about the new case!
"B-But wait! Does that mean something's happened to Mido?" Ochaco gave a concerned frown. "Is that why you asked her to come?"
Mr. Aizawa glanced away, as Principal Nezu informed him of Izuka's name being said by Eri, and to not tell her about it on the way. He knew well enough the girl was still doing her special classes, but he couldn't leave her in the dark... "I can't answer any questions."
The two blinked in confusion, wondering what that meant.
"We're all here, Nighteye," Ryukyu reported to the man. "Let's get started."
"Thanks to the information provided by all of you..." He started off as he stepped forward. "Our investigation has progressed substantially. We've invited you all here for a joint conference to share the intel we've acquired. Regarding the yakuza group Shie Hassaikai and what we believe they might be planning."
"Hold on, I feel like I'm missing something really important here," Eijiro looked up to Fat Gum. "Shie H'what now?"
"I'm curious about that too..." Izuka blinked as she walked towards them.
"Some bad guys are planning to do some bad things. And they've called a meeting so we can talk it all out," He informed the three students and glanced towards Tamaki's arm. "Trust me. You two are very much involved. Though I'm not entirely sure why they've involved your friend here." Tamaki's arm was bandaged and he was recovering well. Izuka blinked towards it, wondering if that was the sole reason why she was here. But if that was the case, she could've just talked to the police and they'd report it to one of the heroes in the building. That didn't warrant her being here...
"Alright," Bubble Girl clenched a fist. "Let's begin at the beginning. For the past couple of weeks now, those of us at Nighteye Agency have been conducting an investigation into Shie Hassaikai, a small but organized group of criminals."
"What prompted this?" Kesagiri Man spoke up as all of them were sitting in front of a long rectangular-shaped table.
"An accident involving a gang of thieves called the Reservoir Dogs," Bubble Girl asked, Izuka sitting between her brother and Mirio. She silently glanced up at her brother, as she had a feeling that the investigation was why he had been so unfocused in school lately.
"Yeah, I heard about that," Mr. Brave stated and Izuka hummed in thought, still racking her brain. She had heard about it too, but that was about it as far as a connection went as to why she was there.
"The police thought the whole thing was an accident, but there were a number of details that didn't add up. So we began tailing them," Bubble Girl continued for the group.
"In my capacity as a Nighteye Agency sidekick," Centipeder, someone Izuku hadn't worked with much, told the group of people. "I began following leads to see what I could uncover. I found that in the past year, the members of Shie Hassaikai have had increased contact with those outside of their organization, including other groups whose business dealings are less than reputable. Their aim seemed to be expanding their organization and enriching its coffers. Shortly after our investigation began...they made contact with a member of the League of Villains. Jin Bubaigawara, villain name: Twice." A slideshow pictured Overhaul getting into a car with Twice. Izuka's eyes widened a little, wondering if that was why she was here, because she was a kidnap victim of the League. But if that was the case, Mr. Aizawa would've pulled Katsuki too, not just her. "They were wary of being tailed, so I was unable to follow them, but with the help of the police, I confirmed that an altercation had occurred between the two groups." The next picture was of the destroyed warehouse that both groups left behind.
"That'd be about when they decided to reach out to Tsukauchi and me," Gran Torino pointed out to them. "Figured we'd be able to assist, given the League's involvement."
"Where is Tsukauchi?" Kesagiri Man asked while sitting next to him.
"Follow-ups with some other eyewitnesses. You know, cop stuff. Sorry, kid," He glanced over to the twins. Izuku gasped from the sudden apology. "I didn't see something like this coming. I've got a bad feeling that things are about to get ugly."
"I don't care if they do. I wanna help," Izuku spoke up in determination.
"Hold up, you know him?" Mirio smiled a little.
"Oh, Gran Torino? I did my internship with him."
"And I met him when...when my brother introduced him," Izuka looked away while whistling innocently, leaving out the part that they met during the Hosu Incident. The less said about the twins' involvement with that, the better...
Eijiro looked towards Gran Torino wide-eyed. That's the old man who was with All Might and Mido in Kamino! Midoriya knows some big guns He looked back towards the twins.
Sir Nighteye glanced towards his work-study students before turning away. "Go on, Bubble Girl."
She gasped and then looked at her tablet. "So, after all that went down...we posted a notice on the HN requesting assistance."
"I think we can skip that part," Centipeder told the female sidekick.
"Sorry!"
"What's the HN?" Ochaco blinked in confusion.
"Stands for Hero Network," Nejire explained for the brunette. "It's an online service that can only be accessed by pros. You can see what all the heroes in the country are up to, and you can ask for help from people whose Quirks might come in handy!"
Locklock, sitting next to Izuku, looked annoyed by this. "Does anybody wanna tell me why a buncha high school kids were invited to this conference? One of them isn't even from a work study!" He pointed at Izuka, who froze at being called out and she bit her lip, sweating immensely. "I don't care if they are from UA. If we have to keep stopping to explain this stuff, we'll never get to the actual plan."
"Don't say that," Fat Gum defended the students, gesturing to Eijiro, Tamaki, and Izuka. "Those three have important information to pass along."
"Uh...we do?" Eijiro looked up at him in bewilderment.
"Huh?" Izuka turned to the three in utter confusion.
"I wanna go home..." Tamaki uttered in dismay, shaking.
"Before that, let's make one thing clear," Mr. Aizawa spoke up, turning to Izuka. "Mido shouldn't even be here. But because there's been...a concerning piece of information that's come around, we're giving her some leyway by having her attend this meeting. It's important she knows what danger she might be in." Izuka blinked slowly at him, wondering how that was even possible when she wasn't doing work studies at all.
"Wait, what?!" Ochaco stood up in alarm. "What do you mean?"
"Are they targeting her like the League of Villains?" Tsuyu looked towards the girl in concern. Mr. Aizawa gave them a death glare to sit down and they did in fear. Ochaco. glanced at her friend with a small frown.
Shigaraki confirmed at the mall that they had Mido's DNA...is that why she's here?
"Anyway, I see a lot of new faces, so let me introduce myself," Fat Gum gave a wide grin. "Nice to meetcha, I'm Fat Gum!"
"He's so cute and squishy!" Ochaco and Tsuyu said in unison, Izuka giving them a small smile.
"Ha! Who wants candy?" He held out his hand, revealing some out of nowhere.
"Hassaikai's movements are hard to trace, but we suspect one of their main sources of income is illegal drug sales," Sir Nighteye changed the topic. "So I requested help from heroes who have some expertise in that area."
Eijiro then looked up at his mentor in realization. Oh yeah, he said something about catching smugglers.
Fat Gum then gave an angry look. "Yup, I brought in my fair share of drugs dealers back in the day, and at Red Riot's debut fight, he proved he could too!" He clenched a fist, remembering the bullet that fired the Quirk-erasing drug. "Tamaki was shot while he was saving Mido from it, and the bullet contained some kinda drug I've never heard of before," He released his hand, the candies disappearing. "One that destroys Quirks."
Izuku and Ochaco gasped, looking towards Izuka in concern.
"Destroys Quirks?" Kesagiri Man questioned in alarm.
"Whoa, what?" Mirio stood up in shock to hear his friend got hurt. The two were busy with work studies that they hadn't had time to discuss it. "Tamaki, you're okay, right?"
"Yeah, the stuff wore off while I slept," He informed his friend, holding up an arm made out of something. "Here, look. I've got this cow hoof and everything."
"Guess we know what you had for breakfast!" Mirio exclaimed while Izuku was a bit put off seeing it...
"It must be because of Mido's Quirk that coward aimed for her," Eijiro gritted his teeth a little.
"Ah! That's right. When I was there with Kirishima, Amajiki, and Fat Gum, that guy was focused on me first," Izuka blinked in realization as she remembered Tamaki moving her out of the way.
"Are you okay?!" Ochaco yelped from her seat.
"I'm fine thanks to Amajiki saving me," She smiled towards Tamaki, who turned red and looked away.
"It was nothing..."
"So…were you his target?" Izuku asked in a bit of fear. He was a bit concerned it would be like the League of Villains all over again...already the Shie Hassaikai was looking at her, the last thing he wanted was for her to be a constant target for other villains.
"I don't think so. It seemed more like an easy way out than intentional. He probably figured out I was friends with Amajiki and Kirishima and thought I'd be an easy target to make them mad or something," She looked up in thought.
"I'm glad to know the effects aren't permanent at least," Locklock spoke up, though he still didn't look too happy. "So this stuff doesn't zap a Quirk for good."
"No. But Eraser Head has some further insight," Sir Nighteye gestured to the teacher.
"It doesn't seem to function exactly like my Erasure does," Mr. Aizawa looked towards everyone. "Since I'm not actually attacking the Quirk directly. What we call a Quirk is an extraordinary addition to an ordinary human body. Those additions are collectively referred to as Quirk genes. I can shield those genes and temporarily block their expression, but I don't actually damage them." Kind of like if he had used his Erasure on someone like Mashirao, his tail wouldn't disappear or hurt him. He just wouldn't be able to use it for a while.
"But after Tamaki here was shot, we brought him to the hospital, and they found that his Quirk genes had sustained damage," Fat Gum looked pissed off by saying it, because he wanted to find the ones responsible to get justice for his student. "Fortunately, they seem to have healed on their own, and he's back to normal now."
"What do we know about the substance he was shot with?" Sir Nighteye wondered, eyeing the purple-haired boy.
"Whatever it was didn't harm the rest of his body. Nothing but his Quirk was impaired in any way," Fat Gum reported to everyone. "The guy who shot him clammed up. He won't say a word. And the round that hit Tamaki was totally spent. However, Kirishima bravely defended Tamaki and Mido from a bullet, which then bounced off his own body and should now provide us with a viable sample."
"Whoa, I did that?" Eijiro flinched in surprise, pointing to himself. "Really? That's crazy!" I have no idea what's going on.
Ochaco, Tsuyu, and Nejire smiled towards the boy. "Wow, awesome job, Kirishima!" Ochaco complimented her classmate.
"That's so cool!" Tsuyu gushed a little. "I'm glad both of them were able to protect you, Mido!"
"Oh, yeah. His Quirk. It's Hardening, right?" Nejire guessed correctly in excitement.
"And when we analyzed the substance from the bullet, we discovered something that made me sick to my stomach," Fat Gum confessed, and it had to be something horrifying to be able to disgust him of all heroes. He then narrowed his eyes. "It contained human blood and cells."
Izuku felt like his heart was gonna stop hearing that. Izuka covered her mouth in disgust, keeping in her bile. Human blood...?
Ochaco gasped in horror as she looked up with wide eyes. "Sounds like something out of a scary movie," Tsuyu pointed out, a finger on her chin.
Mirio was sweating a lot when he heard it, Izuku just as silent as he was. "In other words, that effect came from a person," Ryukyu crossed her arms. "From someone's power. A Quirk that can destroy Quirks..."
"Mm..." One of the heroes glanced down in confusion. "I'm not connecting the dots here. How is all this related to Hassaikai?"
Or to me? I still don't understand it at all. I can't destroy Quirks and I never heard of the Hassaikai until now. Izuka glanced over to Mr. Aizawa.
"The man who shot Tamaki used an illegal drug to boost his Quirk during his fight with Kirishima," Fat Gum started off. "The distribution channels for stuff like that are complex. Although things've shrunk since the old days, drugs still pass through various people and organizations before they finally reach the end user. There's no concrete evidence that Hassaikai handled the drug, but we know for a fact that they interacted with one of the middlemen responsible for moving it."
"That's all?" The hero questioned again.
"The other day, Ryukyu's team broke up a fight between two villain groups," Sir Nighteye spoke up this time. "One of those groups was controlled by the intermediary organization that Fat Gum just mentioned."
"One of the two giants had been given an inferior drug that didn't last long," Ryukyu then pointed out.
"There have been a rash of gang related crimes recently, and most could be connected to the Hassaikai if you tried hard enough," Kesagiri Man replied from his seat.
"Which is what it seems like you're doing: trying to make them guilty," The masked hero argued, although he wanted them to face justice too. But to him, they needed solid evidence. "Don't you have anything that implicates them more clearly?"
A picture of Overhaul came up, taking Izuku and Mirio by surprise. "Their young head, Chisaki: Quirk, Overhaul. With this power, he can disassemble things and then reassemble them. A Quirk that allows him to completely break down matter. And a bullet that can break down Quirks..."
Izuku and Miro gasped sharply at this information, shaking in horror. Because they both thought of Eri...and what that meant Overhaul was doing to her. And the two looked down in silence, Izuka glancing between the two of them in silence, her eyes shaking like theirs.
"Please. Please don't go..."
"Chisaki has a daughter named Eri," Sir Nighteye continued as he didn't look at his students. "There are no records or details about her birth. But when Mirio and Midoriya encountered her, they noticed there were bandages wrapped around her arms and legs."
"Could he really do something so horrific?" Ryukyu looked sympathetic for the boys.
"Unfortunately, yes," Gran Torino murmured in despair, the others looking upset as well. "In a world of superhumans, if you can dream it, you can do it."
"And..." Sir Nighteye pushed up his glasses. "Eri said something that does change things. She asked...why the Hassaikai were talking about...Izuka Midoriya." He looked right into the girl's eyes.
"UH!" Izuka gasped, her eyes going wide as she was frozen. Everyone who didn't know looked towards the girl open-mouthed. "She...she asked about me? But if she heard it from the Hassaikai..." She faltered as she didn't finish her sentence.
"Hold on, what are they talking about?" Eijiro looked around cautiously, still confused.
"Once again, why do we have children in this meeting?" Locklock asked them bitterly, opening his eyes. "I'll say this one time: we're wondering if this Chisaki bastard is turning his daughter's body into bullets...and selling them on the black market. And if he's talking about Izuka Midoriya...that means he's most likely gotten information about her from the League of Villains themselves...about her Quirk and what she can do."
"No..." Eijiro muttered in horror, looking towards his classmate wide-eyed.
"Oh, don't tell me..." Ochaco shed a few tears, looking towards her best friend.
"To be clear, we aren't certain that he's actually selling the bullets, or of his intentions with Mido," Sir Nighteye's glasses shined a little. "At this point, their efficacy appears to be questionable. It's possible that they're still in the testing phase, and that Overhaul won't seek out Mido himself. And he's giving them out as samples to rally more people to his cause. We have no hard evidence, but we do know he's gathering allies and funds from across the nation. If the completed drug allows him to annihilate someone's Quirk entirely...imagine the devastation he could cause."
"Just talking about it's enough to make my blood boil," Fat Gum was now even angrier. "Let's go get this monster!"
Locklock scoffed a little. "Woulda saved us a lot of trouble if these two amateurs had just gotten the girl away from him," He glared towards the three students next to him. "Or if we had gotten out Izuka out of the city instead of just-" The man faltered as he saw water flying down from her face.
The short green-haired girl was shaking, clutching at her skirt as she was openly crying. "That's...that's so horrible..." Izuka's tears fell onto her skirt as her body was shaking. "That poor little girl..." She couldn't even imagine what Eri's life was like to live in fear and pain...
"I take full responsibility," Sir Nighteye spoke up, though that didn't make it any better on the three of them. "The blame should not fall on them, and we aren't going to make Mido feel like a victim. I thought it was important to tell her in person given that one of my students is her own brother. Even without knowing the whole story, they acted to save the child, each in their own way. Midoriya was willing to bear the risk of taking her then, while Mirio chose to wait for another opportunity, when success would be more likely."
Izuku clenched an angry fist for not getting Eri out sooner. World's greatest hero. Not even close.
Mirio clenched a fist himself for insisting to leave Eri with Overhaul. Save a million people? I couldn't even save her...
Izuka clenched a shaking fist harder into her skirt. If I had been there...if I knew what she had been going through...
Sir Nighteye held his hands, looking grim himself as he knew how hard this was hitting them. "I assure you, nobody in this room is more frustrated than they are."
Both of their chairs fell as the boys stood up. "We'll get Eri away from him next time..." Izuku started off to his mentor.
"And we'll protect her!" He and Mirio exclaimed in unison.
"Indeed," Sir Nighteye looked up in determination. "That's precisely what we've come here to discuss..."
It felt like when it came to Eri, a huge mask was going to swallow her up...both Izuku and Mirio didn't know for how long, but it had to end for her sake.
Izuku's lip quivered a lot. We'll save her!
We won't let her down Mirio gave a shaky smile.
"Huh," Locklock scoffed, getting their attention. "You kids wanna talk big, that's fine. But if what Nighteye is saying is for real, that little girl is at the center of Hassaikai's entire underground drug operation. She may have managed to get away from Overhaul for a few minutes, but she got herself seen by a couple of heroes and let it slip about a girl she heard about from him. You think he's still gonna keep her at home after that? Hell, I know I sure wouldn't. And if we go bustin' into their headquarters and she's not there, they're gonna know that we're onto them. We gotta be sure of where he's hiding her."
"He has a point," Ryukyu closed her eyes in thought while Izuka was attempting to recollect herself. She wiped at her eyes with her sleeve. "Do you have a plan for that, Nighteye?"
"That's our conundrum. Since we don't currently know how far they've taken their plans, the success of our initial strike is crucial. To that end, we've made a thorough list of groups with connections to Hassaikai, as well as properties owned by the organization. This is our starting point," A map appeared, highlighting several locations. "I would like you all to investigate each coordinate on this map. It is the most logical way to narrow down our targets."
"So that's why you asked minor heroes like us to join you," One of them from the back spoke up.
"What do you mean?" The masked hero next to him asked.
"Go on. Look," The other looked up at everyone else in the room. "The heroes in this room all operate in one of those locales. We know the areas better than most."
"Didn't expect someone who worked with All Might for so long to be such a careful planner," Fat Gum still looked pretty mad, though. "Let's just go bring 'em down! While we're takin' our sweet time, that abused girl's out there crying somewhere!"
"We can't do this like All Might would," Sir Nighteye pointed out, knowing that the hero's fist was shaking in anger. "That's why we must be meticulous about our strategies and predictions from the outset. So we have the highest chance of saving her."
"He's right. We shouldn't rush," Gran Torino agreed, causing Fat Gum to stare at him. "If we show our hand and then don't end up rescuing her, then we'd just be throwing gas on a fire. Like how Stain's capture was a beacon that led criminals to seek out and join the League. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if they handed out Quirk-destroying weapons to those hoodlums in order to increase their recruitment."
"You're thinkin' too dang much!" Fat Gum snapped towards him. "If we keep sitting here yappin' about it, we're never gonna get anything done!"
"Excuse me," Mr. Aizawa raised a hand. "I've got a question." Sir Nighteye nodded in silence to let him continue. "I don't know the specifics of your Quirk, Nighteye. Feel free to correct. But from what I've heard of it...your Quirk, Foresight, allows you to see into the future. So why not use it on us? That's logical, right?"
"I'm sorry," Sir Nighteye looked at him regretfully. "But I cannot." Mr. Aizawa's eyes widened towards him in surprise. "My Foresight has some limitations. I need a full 24 hours between activations. That means I get one person, and then I'm spent for the rest of the day. Additionally, the future is played in my mind like a flashback. Think of it like viewing a filmstrip. For one hour, I have the power to watch a person's life as a movie. The issue is, everything I see is from a tight perspective on the person in question. This severely limits my capacity to interpret context."
"That should still provide more than enough information to be useful, don't you think?" Mr. Aizawa implored curiously. "And it doesn't explain why you can't do it."
Sir Nighteye put a hand over his face. "What if I saw imminent death in your near future? Worse...what if it were a cruel, merciless demise?"
Izuku gasped a little, wondering if this partly had to do with All Might. This is...because of what happened with All Might.
"Please! Stop!" Sir Nighteye screamed after All Might. "If you continue like this, I swear, you'll face off against a villain and die an unspeakably gruesome death!"
Izuka's eyes softened a little, since she could tell that Sir Nighteye had no control over what he foresaw...
"My Quirk should be employed only after we've confirmed the highest likelihood of success," He informed everyone, since he didn't want to have it be only a possible outcome, or someone dying. "Then it can help ensure our victory. It shouldn't be relied upon when there are still too many uncertainties."
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, hold up," Locklock protested from his seat. "Death is still information. If we know what's comin', we can figure out how to survive."
"You don't understand. It's possible what I see is unavoidable," Sir Nighteye wasn't going to do it, it reminded him too much of his last conversation with All Might. Although only three people in the room knew that...
"Bro, that's the only excuse you have, for real?!" Locklock argued in a bit of frustration. "Oh hell no, just use it on me now! I'll show you I can beat death!"
"I can't!" Sir Nighteye insisted, and the room was deadly silent.
"...Yeah, alright," Locklock muttered in defeat.
Sir Nighteye looked towards the table and not even towards anyone else. Fat Gum looked at him skeptically as everyone else stared. It was now very tense until Ryukyu let out a sigh. "We should get started. There's a child in trouble and a student is in Overhaul's interest. That's what's important here."
Sir Nighteye then got onto his feet. "We must confirm the girl's location and take her into our protection as quickly as possible using the most accurate data. As for Mido, UA's decision is to allow her to stay in the dorms for her own safety and continue her life normally." She looked up in disbelief as she couldn't just walk away, but she wasn't going to protest out loud either. "I'm counting on your help. All of you."
Izuku gritted his teeth, remembering the look on Eri's face when she walked away...
The students were all sitting together at a table once the meeting was over. "If only I'd rescued her then..." Izuku murmured, he and Mirio looking at the table still. "Even if I had to use force. At least she'd be safe."
"Aw, man," Eijiro looked at him sympathetically. "So that's what happened that day?" He gritted his teeth, remembering what Overhaul could be doing to her right now. "So frustrating!"
"We know you tried, Deku," Ochaco murmured sadly for him. "And that whatever is going on with Mido, they won't get her power or whatever they want from her." She looked towards Izuka sitting between Tsuyu and her brother. She hadn't looked up at them either...
Tamaki looked towards Mirio in silence. I've never seen Mirio look so down before.
"We're wondering if this Chisaki bastard is turning his daughter's body into bullets and selling them on the black market." There wasn't even any optimism in Mirio's eyes like usual...
Poor Eri...
The elevator doors opened up, and they looked to see Mr. Aizawa approaching. "Is this a funeral or something?"
"Mr. Aizawa, hello sir," Tsuyu greeted the teacher as they looked up.
"Ah. Call me Eraser head outside of school," He told his five students. "You know, it's just my luck. Before you got involved in this, I was going to recommend that your work studies be suspended."
"What?!" Eijiro stood up in shock as the others gasped. "Why would you do that?"
"You were listening when he said the League of Villains is involved, right?" Mr. Aizawa questioned them with a serious look in his eyes. "That changes things."
Izuku gritted his teeth, knowing that if they were...he wouldn't even had met Eri that day... Mr. Aizawa stared at the boy in particular as well as his sister.
"We'll get Eri away from him next time-"
"And we'll protect her!" He and Mirio stated in unison.
The short green-haired girl was shaking, clutching at her skirt as she was openly crying. "That's...that's so horrible..." Izuka's tears fell onto her skirt as her body was shaking. "That poor little girl..."
He rubbed the back of his neck, knowing how much they were already invested into helping Eri. "Here's the deal. Midoriya..." Izuku flinched from hearing his name. "You still haven't proven I can trust you again."
He gasped as he looked up.
"In order to regain our confidence, you'll need to obey every rule. I mean to the letter. Be model students."
He put his hands into his pockets, staring down at his student. "Unfortunately, I'm positive that if I try to stop you now, you'll do something reckless and attempt to take things into your own hands. Wouldn't be surprised if you got your sister roped into it." Izuka said nothing as she clamped her mouth shut. He then bent down in front of the boy. "So I'll watch you. If you're going to see this through, you gotta do it the right way. Use your head," He then hit a fist against Izuku's heart. "You hear me? Problem child?"
Izuku's lip quivered at his teacher giving him some level of trust despite everything. He then gave a small nod.
"Mido," Mr. Aizawa stared at the girl and she looked up silently. "This is as far as I'm allowing you to be involved. None of what you heard today goes beyond this place. You'll continue your special classes as normal tomorrow."
"She said my name," She spoke in a grave tone, looking up with conviction. "That means that I'm involved as much as Togata-San and my brother are now. And Amajiki and Kirishima saved my life. I'm connected somehow and-"
"That's enough," He interrupted sharply and she clamped her mouth shut. "Have you forgotten already that you're not even supposed to know all this? You just happened to be there with them, and somehow, your name gets brought up."
She bit her lip, clutching at her skirt again as she squeezed her eyes shut. "...So what? You think that I'm an accomplice to the Hassaikai operation now? That I can't be trusted?"
"No one is saying that," Mr. Aizawa denied immediately to the girl. "Get your head straight. What I'm saying is that you haven't earned my trust back either. And you're still on punishment. So even if I overlooked that for a minute...you're not on a work study like your classmates or the others. Continue your special classes as instructed, and you'll have a chance of being able to help that girl one day."
She frowned sadly at his explanation as she didn't want to push Eri away like this...but she didn't really have much of a choice either. Mr. Aizawa wasn't wrong unfortunately...her brother, Ochaco, Tsuyu, and Eijiro stared at her sadly as they could tell how much she wanted to step in.
Tamaki looked towards Mirio. "Mirio, please, will you try to smile?"
"Hey, hey! I know what'll help you!" Nejire spoke up cheerfully. "Just remember, regretting something and getting frowny doesn't change things. You know it?"
He sniffed, wiping at his nose. "...Yeah."
"I'll only say this once," Mr. Aizawa spoke up again. "In case it gives you a little peace of mind. Just because you didn't hold onto her this time...doesn't mean you didn't give Eri hope." Izuku clenched his fists as Mr. Aizawa got onto his feet. "So keep looking forward."
"Right!" Izuku straightened up in his seat.
"Mr. Aizawa!" Ochaco brightened up towards him.
"I said I'm Eraser here," He corrected his student.
"I'm your man for the rest of my life, Eraser!" Eijiro grinned widely as well.
"Ugh, not interested," He groaned a little.
"Sorry!" Eijiro bowed his head.
"Take it down a notch, Kirishima," Ochaco warned while Nejire, Mirio, and Tamaki all smiled towards the respect that they had for their teacher.
"Mirio?" Tamaki smiled towards his friend.
"Yeah, I know," He nodded and got onto his feet. He then smiled towards Izuku. "Hey, Midoriya. Next time we'll definitely save her."
"Right!" Izuku nodded sharply in agreement. "No matter what!"
Mr. Aizawa looked towards the still silent Izuka. "Come on, I'll take you back to the dorms," He told the girl.
Izuka didn't say anything as she stood up, her brother looking up at her hopefully. "We'll see you later, okay?"
"I'm sure everything will be fine," Ochaco attempted to assure the girl as Mr. Aizawa walked away.
"Yeah, just keep going with trying to get back into his good graces," Eijiro spoke up and she turned away, walking up to her teacher.
"Yeah, okay..." She murmured dejectedly and they all frowned towards her.
"Now I understand. Of course. You sent Midoriya to me in the hopes that he would help mend my relationship with All Might," Sir Nighteye guessed correctly as he and Gran Torino were standing in front of the window.
"Heh. I thought it would give you an excuse to talk, at least," He admitted to the man. "When you get old, it's your job to help stubborn youngsters. So, the kid. What are your honest thoughts about him?"
"I think he and All Might are very similar. Same goes with the boy's sister. Especially when it comes to the madness living deep within." As he spoke, Izuku looked up towards the sunset and then his hand. "The one I could never understand. I see that in them both."
Izuku then clenched a determined fist to save Eri no matter what!
As Izuka and Mr. Aizawa walked back to the train station, it was quiet. The girl looked towards the ground the entire time, thinking about Eri. He glanced at her, remembering what he said about earning his trust. He knew that she was questioning a lot of things right about now... "You're second-guessing yourself, aren't you?" Mr. Aizawa broke the silence and she didn't react. "That you might've done the wrong thing all this time."
"...I just...think that if I can save her too...she can have someone she can depend on. I can see myself in her. It's like..." She trailed off and he briefly glanced at her.
"...Like you want to redeem your perceived mistake of never using your Quirk."
"Yeah..." She let out a heavy sigh. "My brother wanted me to be so happy being a hero...that I didn't realize back then how much I had disappointed him. All that time, I didn't want him to see me use something he couldn't develop much growing up. So for me to hear that little girl's suffering...it reminded me of my own of not letting anyone see who I can be. Because the only thing I cared about was not letting Izuku...hate me like you do now."
His eyes widened a bit as he stared at his student. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a mochi ice cream shop. "...We're making a stop here, alright?" He turned towards the store, baffling the girl as she blinked, coming to a stop.
"Uh...b-but-" She stammered nervously; the last thing she expected from him was to make a stop for ice cream.
He opened the door, turning back around to her. "Come on before I lose my patience," He stated and she shuffled past him in defeat. Both of them approached the counter as she nervously stood next to him. He put his hands into his pockets while looking at the girl. "You like mango with cream, right? And biscuits?"
"Yeah, but-" She gasped in realization of why he asked, rapidly waving her hands. "Uh, please, you don't need to do that! Really!"
"One for her too," Mr. Aizawa ignored her and her hair stood on end.
"Ahh!" She screeched as he paid. "If you're gonna get me ice cream, at least let me pay you back!"
"Don't worry about that," He told her as she took her cone, her eyes softening a little.
"Mr. Aizawa..."
The two then stepped out, licking their big waffle cones in silence. She was feeling a little bit better, but not by much. "Mido. I don't hate you." She gasped, looking up at him in shock. "And you did make the right choice of facing All for One. But...don't forget that you are still my student. That means you have to keep training hard if you're gonna encounter something like that again. Imagine if you hadn't convinced All Might...let's just say it wouldn't be the same outcome." She winced and turned away, taking another lick of her cone. "I'm still not lifting your punishment. But...just know that even though I'm the hardest on you...I'm proud of you despite everything. Don't go broadcasting it."
"...Thank you, Mr. Aizawa," She smiled gratefully up at him. "I'll keep making you proud of me by getting my provisional hero license! I'll earn it for me, so that I can become stronger and have you see me as something more than a problem child!" She clenched a fist in determination. He just stared at her before looking up ahead.
Keep working hard, Mido.
Eri was in her room at night, and the door opened. She gasped in fear as she looked up, wondering if they were already going to torture her. "Yo, Eri. Relax, it's just me. I'm just checkin' to make sure you're doin' okay in here," A man stepped inside, and various toys on the floor were unopened. "What? You haven't touched any of your toys. And after I bought 'em special for you. Wouldn't hurt to let your guard down a little, you know?"
Despite his kind tone, she didn't trust it at all. She looked absolutely terrified of him. He then gave her a big grin. Look happy or I might be the one who gets killed next time, ya brat.
Once he came to a stop, he reached out a hand. "See, I'm not scary." She flinched out of instinct and he patted her on the head. "There anything you want me to bring you?" She turned away so she wouldn't have to look at him. "No worries. If I'm in the way, I'll leave you alone." He then walked out and went down the hall.
"You're going to be her new caretaker. Make sure she doesn't want to run away," Overhaul instructed while making another drug. "Use the carrot, not the stick. Be someone she trusts and feels comfortable with."
I'm a dead man He looked up at the ceiling, knowing that there was no way he was going to get her to trust him. Like I have any idea what kids like. Maybe I'll grab her one of those magical girl dolls...
She laid down on her bed as she couldn't help but think about something stuck on her mind. So strange. She remembered Izuku being so gentle with her. So completely different...and the way he reacted when I asked about Izuka. She then covered her head with a pillow. My entire life...no one's ever reached out to me like that before.
"Whoa, I'm sorry. You took a tumble. Are you okay? Can I help you up? Her whole body's shaking, but she's not making a sound. What are you doing to this girl?"
Tears appeared in her eyes, her mouth quivering. He felt so kind...so warm. A tear then ran down her cheek. And...I want to meet Izuka. She must be important to him. Meaning that she must be just as kind...
Izuka and Mr. Aizawa finally arrived at Heights Alliance as it was dark out, and she felt exhausted. After everything she heard today, she was going to attempt to get some sleep. And she had classes early morning anyway...
"Mido! Where were you today?" Shoto approached the girl and she blinked in surprise as she looked up. Katsuki was standing in the doorway staring at her, meaning that the two waited for her once they got back from classes. "Did Mr. Aizawa change his mind?"
"If you think you can get out of these dumb classes, I'll explode you!" Katsuki threatened her and she waved a sheepish hand.
"I'm so sorry that I had to leave you behind today! Um..." She looked away sadly at the reminder of Eri's struggling...she couldn't speak about that. Plus, she wasn't even supposed to know, so she already knew they weren't supposed to either. "It's not important why I had to skip class. I'm kinda tired, so I'm gonna head to bed early."
Katsuki wasn't buying it as he and Shoto watched her walk past them into the building. That's a load of bullshit.
Izuka was almost to her room when someone came up from behind. "What are you not telling me?" Katsuki's voice boomed and she flinched, closing her eyes knowingly. Of course he'd wanna know what was going on... "It's something big, isn't it?"
"Everything's fine," She glanced over her shoulder briefly. "I'm still in my punishment, so I'll be going back to classes tomorrow." She would ask him about the kiss on the cheek if he was going to be like that, but that was the least of her problems. And she knew that she wouldn't get a straight answer from him.
"He still took you out. Why?" He narrowed his eyes a little. "And why the hell are we doing this secret shit now?"
"Are you gonna ask a question every time I answer?" She glared a bit while unlocking her door. "But really, I'm okay, there's...nothing to talk about," Izuka groaned a bit to herself. She didn't want to lie to him, but she couldn't really say anything either right now. Although yes, she didn't like it since they were on better terms now. He knew the secret of One for All, so she could trust him, she just...wasn't allowed to say anything.
"Stop lying," He slammed a hand on the doorway, and she stared up at him. "Your tone doesn't match your words. You know something is happening, don't you? Maybe not at school, but something to do with Deku. Is it about All Might's secret? No...you wouldn't keep that quiet, or act like this. Is it...about those League of Idiots? The big bad boss?"
"Get away from my door, please," She looked up at him pleadingly. "If it was, don't you think I'd be upfront about it?"
"You're not being upfront about something!" He argued back and gripped his hand on top of her doorknob. "What? You think you're too good to not tell me now?"
"It's not like that. Now let me go into my room before I scream," Izuka threatened in a thin voice.
"So then tell me what the hell you're hiding!" She moved his hand away forcibly and opened the door, annoying him. "Don't make me break open that door, Izuka!"
"Do it! Then you can explain to Mr. Aizawa what you're even doing here when you're supposed to be in your room," She challenged the blond and he gritted his teeth. "And you'd have to fix the door too!" She paused as he didn't react and then huffed. "That's what I thought. I can't tell you, at least, not right now, okay? Goodnight, Katsuki," She then closed the door gently and locked it.
"Ahhh, damn you!" He kicked at the door a little.
"You're just giving me more reason to stay silent! And you're fixing that scuff mark I know you just did!" She called out from inside.
He grunted, grumbling heatedly to himself. "Damn that girl, always pissing me off!"
"Get the hell away from my door!" She slammed it with her hands after hearing that. Katsuki flinched and growled, hitting the door more angrily this time and then storming off.
She sighed while pressing her back against the door and slid down it. I'm really sorry, Katsuki...but I can't tell you. Not right now at least. It has to wait until all of this is over...
She sniffed a little as she tried not to cry, looking away. The last thing she wanted was to fight about this after so long of them getting closer…
Katsuki looked up at the ceiling, unable to sleep. His arms were behind his head as he had an intense gaze on his face. I can't believe she's looking down on me after all this fucking time. And for what? No doubt Deku knows and can't say anything either. Ahhh, god damn it, she makes me so pissed whatever she does…