Midoriya blinked awake to a gentle rocking motion. 'Blinked awake' was really an unassuming way to describe the grimace he made the moment he returned to consciousness and was assaulted with waves of soreness and exhaustion, despite sleeping for who knew how long.

There was a gentle rocking that made him wonder if he'd fallen asleep on someone. It reminded him of his mother's gentle soothing when he had been younger.

It made him homesick. He could no longer ignore the crushing thought of never being able to return to his world. His home. Midoriya had nothing for him here but trials and tribulations. At least back home, where he was hunted for his quirk and shunned by the very people he was trying to protect—there were still people he cared for who cared for him in return. Knowing why he had to persevere made the pain and hungry and exhaustion bearable.

Here, while he knew that Shigaraki had managed to follow him into this world somehow, there was a good chance he had a way back. Midoriya had no choice but to defeat him here before continuing his search to leave this world. After all, Shigaraki hated his very existence. There was no way he'd willingly tell Midoriya how to return.

He shoved that thought away and scrambled out of… bed?

When had he laid down? Much less in a bed that wasn't the one he'd become accustomed to over the past few nights. The last thing he remembered clearly was the sight of Shigaraki retreating into the distance, most likely to regroup for another attempt on his life.

And then arguing with Ace…

Midoriya groaned as the pieces began to fall into place; he rubbed his eyes as though that would change the predicament he found himself in. As the floor tilted again beneath him, the pieces started to come together and fit into a picture he didn't particularly like. Now he just had to find the jerk(s) responsible.

He opened the door and stared down the hall. A glance up confirmed he was below deck on a ship. At least there were individual rooms rather than an open shared space. Small blessings.

It only took him a minute more to figure out where the hatch up to the deck was. Granted it was a minute longer than it should have taken given the ladder was a dead-giveaway. He was tired, but that was no excuse for a lack of vigilance.

The second he climbed up onto the top deck, he spotted the culprits.

The boy stared at the pirates (and whatever Sabo was) incredulously.

Sabo noticed him first, given he was facing his way, though the others followed suit not long after.

They stared back at him. He could practically feel their eyes roaming across his figure, searching for injuries, he presumed. Their gazes burned his skin with indignity.

"So you decided to kidnap me?!" Midoriya blurted out, breaking the awkward silence with a statement rather than a question.

Ace simply scratched his head and offered a sheepish smile. He did not look apologetic in the slightest.

The audacity.

Izou tried to offer a platitude, "We're pirates after all."

Emphasis on tried.

"Remind me to never empathize with pirates," he muttered under his breath.

That comment was just loud enough to earn a snort from Sabo, though luckily none of the pirates had heard his sass. After getting kidnapped, he no longer had any notion of the limits of their actions. Pirates. Honestly he felt like kicking himself, it was so obvious.

They seemed like good people—though he was still hesitant to rescind that assessment completely—but clearly their good intentions held no respect for the law.

Or boundaries, he complained to himself.

And all of this was for their safety, but no. He had to stumble into the most stubborn, idiotic lawbreakers on the planet. Just his luck.

With a heavy, self-loathing sigh, he trudged back towards his new temporary room in which he had awoken just minutes prior.

"H-hey, were are you going?" Ace asked, looking genuinely worried.

Midoriya simply paused and looked over his shoulder to give him the most deadpan, unimpressed, so done look he could muster before offering a stilted answer, "Back to bed."

None of them seemed to have a rebuttal and let him return to his new temporary room without a fuss. At the very least, they were willing to let him regret his life decisions in peace. He was resigned to staying with these pirates for at least a little bit. He had no idea where they were, and he doubted his stolen Log Pose would be of any use, considering it still pointed towards an island he really didn't want to return to.

Sleep sounded like a fantastic alternative to regretting all of the life decisions that had led him to this point.

"I told you this was a terrible idea," Sabo reminded them, more than a bit vindictive.

Jozu shrugged, "Well he didn't yell, curse, or attack us. He just went back to sleep. So that's probably a good sign."

Izou coughed, but didn't disagree, instead averting his eyes to look out at the open sea instead of anyone's faces. Sabo couldn't hold back a snort, for which Ace shot him a dirty look.

Instead of dignifying that with a response, he decided to change the subject, "So what is this ship's destination, exactly?"

The Phoenix raised an eyebrow at him, though he looked like this was par for the course. Sabo spared a glance at the other three Whitebeard Commanders now squabbling like children. Yeah, he figured that it most likely was for him.

"You decided to come with us on a whim without knowing where we were going," the Phoenix stated more than asked.

That was also fair. Sabo wasn't exactly… thinking logically here. But he knew his Boss wouldn't chew him out for it. There were always actions Dragon took that weren't all logical, despite the cold, calculating demeanor he liked to maintain. He understood that his subordinates were all people that could act on their own free will. Plus he could always write it off as pursuing a potential ally or new member for their cause if anyone had doubts.

Besides, if having a high position and taking on all the responsibility that came with it had benefits, Sabo decided here and now that this was one of them.

Well if Deku was going to retreat from their company, he'd follow suit. After all, these pirates were far too busy giving him strange looks to actually engage him with good conversation. Plus there wasn't much intelligence he could gather for the Revolutionary Army's cause, so other than being polite, he hardly had a reason to stick around and chat.

He didn't feel the need to be polite.

"Hey, where are you going?" Fire Fist called after him as he meandered away from their little huddle.

Sabo simply waved the man off and left without an explanation. He wasn't beholden to their expectations and he had no intention of bending over backwards for their whims, much less going even slightly out of his way.

Besides, Fire Fist always seemed to rub him the wrong way. Sabo sighed as he headed towards his temporary room below deck. There was something about the man that made his brain itch; it was driving him near mad.

Perhaps some sleep and time away from the pirate would do him some good. He knew he'd never hear the end of it if he didn't screw his head on straight.

Deku wasn't seen above deck for the rest of the day. Whether he was asleep the whole time or plotting on how to get away, Izou had no idea. Though he doubted anyone else knew either. Ace had been a bit worried, but Izou had reassured him that the kid was just sleeping off the previous day's battle. Ace had frowned despite his words, but the simple reminder of the early days before he joined their crew, he shut up quite quickly.

It was almost impressive how embarrassment could cow even the strongest of men.

Amusing too.

Despite his own words of reassurance, Izou decided it would be best to check up on the kid. Food would be a decent peace-offering if the kid wasn't in the mood for company. So he snuck into the kitchen and picked the lock on the pantry cupboard—locked only because of the veritable black hole of a brother that was Ace. They were past the point where he would go in to scavenge for and hoard food, but it never hurt to be careful. Starvation on the open waters was a real danger.

Honestly it was a miracle the kid hadn't starved on his own, having left sources of food behind. Not to mention in that backpack of his, however large and organized, would in no way fit all the food a growing boy such as him would need. It made Izou once again think of his little sibling back home and how hungry they had been until they met Oden. Until Oden was by their sides nearly every day, encouraging them to eat their fill.

It never hurt to pass such kindness along. In a world of dog eat dog, Izou didn't mind being something other than what was expected of him. Surrounded by boots ready to stomp down, he would rather be a hand reaching out, escaping out from under the crushing weight of the government.

Deku would no doubt be skeptical, but there was no point in not trying.

Nearly half a day had passed since Deku had woken up and almost immediately returned to sleep off his fatigue. Hopefully he was well rested and not too upset about his… new location. Though given the snarkiness earlier, the pirate hoped he was more resigned than agitated about it. He knocked on the door with anticipation, but the kid hardly kept him waiting for long.

He could make out an inviting murmur through the wooden door, so he gently swung it open and entered. Izou took care to gently close it behind him, though he doubted anyone else would try barging in, save perhaps the blondie that had hitched a ride.

Izou sat down on the bed next to the kid, a bit reluctantly. He assumed the kid was uncomfortable, but rather than showing it, the kid simply shifted over to make room. Given there were no chairs in the room, it would make sense for politeness. Yet the kid didn't even tense up despite having met Izou mere days ago. Hell the two of them had only really spoken once or twice; both conversations had been in tense situations.

"Where are we going?" the kid muttered, his voice still a bit rough from his slumber.

Perhaps Izou had awoken him after all.

There was no reason to lie, though the man couldn't help but hesitate a little. So he decided to answer truthfully, though the kid seemed to pick up on the reluctance. It was almost comical how Ace had gotten so attached to such a perceptive kid, when he himself was utterly oblivious when it came to others' feelings.

"Well, for the moment, we are mainly trying to get away from that island," a simple look had Izou continuing, "We plan to meet back up with our captain and crew, though we may need to stop for supplies along the way."

Determination crept up into Deku's expression, leaving Izou to wonder if that last bit had been a wise addition or more of a blunder.

"But that doesn't explain why you brought me with you. And Sabo…" he trailed off.

Izou smiled, "I believe we've already made that point clear. We want to help you."

"What kind of pirate wants to help people?" Deku scoffed.

It wasn't really a question so much as it was sass with a hint of exasperation. Izou could hardly get mad at the kid for making assumptions when he was already holding back laughter. After all, they were certainly an eccentric crew. One look at their captain and perhaps a second glance at the commanders could tell even a stranger that much.

When Izou finally got his amusement under control, he turned to face the kid. The kid who looked beyond mortified by his own words. Kind of cute, if you asked Izou.

"Well, I can't fault you for that line of thinking, and we are very selfish pirates indeed," this kid was far from a hardened criminal, for as capable as he apparently was, "But we aren't just any old, selfish pirates, you know."

The kid looked away, so Izou couldn't read his expression, however his next words told him all he needed to know, "You're family. That's what your captain said."

He waited to continue. No doubt Ace would have jumped in and tried to convince the kid at this point, but Izou knew he wasn't done with that thought. There was more to this and he'd be damned if he cut Deku short when he was only just beginning to consider opening up.

"...but I'm not your family. I turned your captain down when he offered. I didn't even consider it for a second. Why would you want to help someone like that?"

'Why do you want to help me?' was the unspoken question.

That was what it came down to for him. And in truth, there were two parts to that answer. First of all, one of their family cared about Deku, so of course they would all support their family in any way. Not only had the kid grown on Ace, but on their captain as well. At that point, it wasn't even a question. Secondly, the man simply… felt like it. Izou couldn't put it into words. Deku was almost magnetizing, though not in any malicious or manipulative way. It was more that his genuine kindness drew people in. Izou had set out to help Deku because of Ace and his captain, but sometime after meeting him, it had quickly turned into something else before he even knew it.

Of course, Izou had the sense to know that neither explanation would satisfy Deku's question. They were too good to be true, too difficult to trust. It was incredible how in this world, the truth most often felt like a lie. Perhaps they were all fools.

"We simply want to," he said instead. Not a 'good' reason by any means, however it was far better than the alternative of saying nothing at all, "What kind of pirates would we be if we didn't chase what we wanted?"

The silence felt far more comfortable for Izou than it should have as Deku considered his words.

"I believe you."

Izou startled. That had been the exact opposite of what he'd expected the kid to say.

"Really, I can understand feeling that way," he insisted, and he didn't sound like he was fibbing, "You have your reasons, and I have mine."

It was just that that last line was… disconcerting. Such words were foreboding, warning of a plan that would unfold despite their best efforts.

He paid it little mind beyond acknowledging it. Perhaps the kid would try to leave, but he doubted Deku would be able to get very far. Despite his hesitance to accept the pirates' goodwill, he hadn't completely rejected blondie's.

With a small laugh, hidden behind the back of his hand, Izou refrained from pushing the subject any further. It was a twist of fate at how their lives—not just the Whitebeard Pirates, but also this strange blonde man, Ace's brother, and even the Dark King himself—all intertwined in this way all because of this one kid who refused amity and intimacy beyond pleasantries.

So he allowed the incidental warning slide and asked if the kid needed anything, water or the like. The kid, however hesitant he remained, did not decline the offer.

Ace had been right; Izou liked Deku a lot.