As Toshinori tugs at the tie that is as snug around his neckline as a scarf, he can't help but presume this must be how Shota feels these days. Trading one suit for another. How uncomfortable it is. Like a new set of skin that doesn't quite fit right.

He realizes how much he already misses the golden days of his hero career when he also thinks about his other long lost colleague. Tsukauchi probably felt this way too to an extent. Maybe not in terms of having a pro hero's license, but certainly when it came to the badge on his belt. The switch from the fieldwork on the streets to sitting behind a desk in an office – disguised as a promotion – isn't a subtle switch.

But… if this is the only way that he is able to still do SOME sort of good in this world, then he won't turn down the opportunity, no matter the role. He may no longer be All Might punching out the lights of bad guys, but that doesn't mean he can't shine a new light of perspective on things either. Nobody ever imagined or thought Eraserhead of all heroes would become the new principal of U.A. In his own retirement within hero work, Toshinori figures that his new positioning under the HPSC ought to at least make more sense.

Now that his depowered form is no longer a trade secret, he doesn't have to worry about his monkey suit being the size of a gorilla's suit on him instead. If anything, he actually cleans up nicely and appears presentable – he'd do well to attend a press conference looking like this. Even the custom leather eyepatch covering the hollow hole in his face has a sense of professionalism & style; it's ten times better than a raw bandage that needs constant changing, at least.

He feels a lot like his old sidekick now, Mirai – Nighteye, and not just because of the new set of attire. There's a whole different type of hero work to be done from behind the scenes with paperwork at a desk. It's the hard effort that field fighters, like he himself previously was, constantly take for granted. And speaking of Mirai, now with his new role in the HPSC, he finds himself reconnecting with his old sidekick. To learn the ropes, so to speak. The student perhaps has become the master in that regard.

Mirai shared that his agency has been monitoring the Yakuza crime organization closely for quite some time now and recently filed a request with the HPSC to conduct a raid. There are a lot of legalities when it comes to jurisdiction and limitations to what agencies are allowed to do or to what extent they can operate. Mirai had hoped that Toshinori – with his background as the symbol of peace – could address the matter on the Nighteye Agency's behalf. Hence, why Toshinori is all dressed up.

He steps into the HPSC Director's office, prepared for an entirely different kind of battle. It's the kind that is hard won without throwing any physical punches. It's the kind that he quite honestly struggles with the most – probably no more than Shota does, but still. Toshinori draws in a deep breath in order to steel himself in his seat as soon as he meets the director at her desk.

"Thank you for taking the time to meet with me, Madam Director" He folds his fingers over eachother as he sets his hands in his lap. It's been some time since he's had to behave so sophisticatedly – it was difficult to be delicate with his sizable muscles back during his hay day – but he recalls just enough from his memory to get it right.

"Please, the pleasure is all mine to meet with such a prestigious man of your reputation, All Might" The HPSC Director waves her hand as though she is casting aside any sort of expectations for him to behave so appropriately, but her own posture goes to show how it's unspokenly essential otherwise.

Nevertheless, the retired pro hero plays along. "Oh, you can just call me Toshinori" He humbly bows his head to her. "Those days have finished."

"I see", The Commission's controller returns his gesture with a smile. "Very well then, Toshinori" She then proceeds to swivel in her seat to access a cabinet collection of assorted sugars & creams, "Would you care for a cup of tea or coffee?"

Toshinori denies her offer with a slight grimace and a shake of his head. "Ah, no thanks, it's bad for my stomach.." His hand rests over the place that All For One tore into his intestines; there's a fatal injury there that has left more than just a scar – it's a wound that won't ever heal in more ways than one. "I'm sure you understand.."

"Quite so" The HPSC Director's stare settles over the retired hero's stomach, watching where his hand is placed. "Then let's skip the pleasantries and get to the matter at hand" She only averts her gaze when it moves to the man's own. "What can I do for you, Toshinori?"

Toshinori clears his throat as he prepares to speak up. "It's not so much about what you can do for me, but rather my side– er, colleague" Already, he makes a mistake – it's hard not to think of his partner in the past tense when it comes to the history that they share together – maybe he's still a man with one foot stuck in the past afterall. "I'm sure you have already received and reviewed his formal documentation but I brought it upon myself to share those materials again with you in person", he shakes off the minor error and proceeds with procuring the papers that Mirai lent him.

The chairwoman spares a single glance down at the outstretched forms. "Yes, quite the ambitious movement that he's making by going after the Yakuza" But she doesn't once make a move to take them from Toshinori.

Toshinori notices this and sets the documents down. "He believes you disapprove.." Part of him believes she disapproves as well now.

The organization's overseer smiles as though she is seconds away from breaking out into laughter. "Not at all! The Yakuza is a thorn that has been in our side for quite some time and should be removed sooner rather than later!"

This gives Toshinori a reasonable amount of pause. He was expecting a little more – scratch that – A LOT more pushback. He has to ask her, "Then.. Why the delay?"

The division director leans back in her chair, and crosses one leg over the other, getting comfortably settled into her seat. "I must say, Toshinori, I'm very pleased that you decided to see me before I could invite you over here myself."

"Oh?" Toshinori is taken further aback by what she has to tell him. And something tells him that it's all only about to get a whole lot more interesting.

The woman's smile starts to slip as she shifts to a more serious state. "You see.. Stuffing All Might in a cubicle just doesn't bode well for anybody and the HPSC is in desperate need of a subdivision that can handle such extreme measures as the Yakuza – in order to conserve resources and time so that there is no longer any delay in getting things done around here", she begins to explain the correlating connection between what she's seeking and what he is seeking.

Whatever additional information there is about that correlating tie that might be requestable gets passed over to him in the form of a thin manilla folder. Stamped atop the top secret file is a strange symbol that Toshinori hasn't ever seen before. It's a circular shape with what appears to be a hawk – no, it appears to be more like an American eagle – at its epicenter. The stamped symbol has a tint of blue ink to it.

Toshinori takes the folder so that he can open it up and view its contents. "I see you have documents prepared for me as well, Madam Director" What he finds inside of the file happens to have a lot of signatures that must have been required to pass on permission to a lot of important matters.

The Commission Director gives Toshinori some time to browse the folder and its contents a little while longer before continuing, "Consider it a compromise under a certain set of terms and conditions."

Despite skimming the essentials and getting a basic understanding of what it is he is being presented with, Toshinori still feels that it is rather important to get some verbal clarification & confirmation. "Which are?"

"Only the kind that will benefit you" The HPSC Chairwoman's next smile seems almost sly in nature. "Essentially, we would like to make you the director of this subdivision."

Most people may have perceived All Might a simpleton of a musclehead at times, but Toshinori isn't so unwise to not know things are a bit peculiar with this proposal. For starters, the public safety organization that had worked so hard to take control of hero & quirk legislation wouldn't so easily give up their power once gaining it. Secondly, he has seen similar professional plays such as this done before with U.A. "This isn't a publicity stunt, is it?" He thinks to call it how he sees it.

The Chairwoman gestures to the documents in Toshinori's hands, silently suggesting that he read them over again if he believes there is foul play involved. "Rest assured, you will have full authority" She stands up from her seat so that she can address him from a stance that shows more respect. "All Might has been a protective shield for all of mankind for years now and the HPSC deems that we still need that shield."

Toshinori looks at the title of the sector that he is meant to lead and hums. "A little on the nose calling the subdivision SHIELD then, wouldn't you say?"

The HPSC Director huffs out a laugh as she responds by saying, "Hardly."

S.H.I.E.L.D serves as an acronym for the HPSC's Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement, and Logistics Division. It's exactly as how the Chairwoman had paraphrased it to Toshinori. "You have an interesting sense of humor…"

The Chairwoman carries a grin on her face. "I'm told your colleague, Sir Nighteye, would appreciate that" She apparently had enough foresight of her own to prepare all of this as a specific set of circumstances, all to work 'coincidentally' with what the Nighteye Agency would be requesting through Toshinori as their representative.

Toshinori smiles since he sees some similarities there; plus there's the fact that she's right about Mirai's unique sense of humor. "He might", the retired pro hero imagines his former sidekick would try to hide any sort of amusement anyways.

The HPSC Director sits back down at her desk so that she can rest her elbows upon it and steeple her fingers. "Then we have an arrangement?"

Toshinori gives the SHIELD documents one final glance, "I suppose we do", and ultimately makes the decision that he deems best for the future of Japan – and the world.

"Good", the Chairwoman clasps her hands together with a celebratory clap, "Then let's proceed with the terms and conditions of the raid itself that SHIELD will be conducting!"

Her smile briefly bares a flash of fangs; her eyes glint a glow of yellow in their gaze. Himiko Toga silently shrieks with delight. Disguising herself as the HPSC Director has benefited Tombstone's operation yet again. By eliminating the Yakuza, Tomura Shigaraki will have one less competitor in the criminal underworld. And better yet, the sinister League Of Villains won't even have to lift a finger; she manipulated the heroes into doing their dirty work for them.

The plan to create SHIELD only further supports their long term goals from then on. Already, she herself was able to plant sleeper agents and moles in the HPSC's system. With All Might of all people managing & running a subdivision though, there's no way that anyone would think to doubt The Commission enough to look too closely at things. SHIELD should serve as the perfect front for their operation.

There had been a time that Shota Aizawa would spend his Sunday nights patrolling and chasing down criminals. Now, he spends his Sunday nights – well, still taking out garbage – but it's literal bags of waste that he's carrying to sidewalk disposal bins instead of petty crooks down to the police precinct. Pickup comes early in the morning on Mondays that he doesn't want to miss the neighborhood's weekend deadline.

As though he needed the reminder (he really didn't) he hears someone speak it all aloud for him. "Taking out the trash, eh?" Momentarily, he annoys himself with the thought that a nextdoor neighbor happened to spot him. But when he realizes that there's nobody generally in sight of him, he thinks otherwise. His hero instincts kick in as he whirls around to flash his erasure quirk at where he believes someone is hiding in the shadows of the night. Shota deactivates his quirk when he sees Spider-Man holding Hitoshi Shinso. "Me too", the vigilante seems unphased by the glare that the retired underground hero is giving him.

Shota rubs at his eyes that have gotten used to a lack of quirk usage, already running dry due to being out of practice. "You have a knack for picking up my school's students.." U.A's off duty principal grumbles & groans over seeing the work that's just been dropped on his doorstep.

Spider-Man snorts on his amusement when thinking about the irony of that statement, "You have no idea!" But since Shota isn't all that aware of the vigilante's recently developed relationship with Kyoka, Shota gives a less than amused glare on his end. Spider-Man stutters as he tries to salvage the situation. "Er, I mean – yeah.."

Shota shakes his head as he sighs and crosses his arms – at this point, he's used to putting up with this type of nonsense between U.A's collection of kids and Spider-Man – the constantly tired teacher turned principal gives Hitoshi Shinso a glance. "So why my house and not the police station this time?"

Spider-Man looks down at the still unconscious condition of Hitoshi too. He's silent for a second. Then, "Last time was different.. A mistake.. I made a lot of those with Shinso…"

Shota raises both of his eyebrows upon hearing that. After how hard he grilled Hitoshi the last time something like this happened, he hopes that there isn't an overly blown out of proportion misunderstanding here. He has to ask for the vigilante to elaborate, "Meaning?"

But Spider-Man is hesitant to delve into details. "Look – Can you just, I dunno, reprimand him in a way that doesn't involve throwing him in prison?" The vigilante sees how stern a stare Shota has and swallows. "I want to believe that there's still good inside of him.. If there's one thing that I've learned recently, it's that people can sometimes lose their way and need others to help them find their way back.."

Shota listens closely to what Spider-Man has to say and sighs; he can hear the sincerity in Spider-Man's voice, and so he can't help himself to want to try and help. "Since when did becoming a principal mean doubling as a psychiatrist.. ?", he complains by muttering swear words under his breath but there's no way that he doesn't ultimately relent in the end, "Fine!" Shota nods in agreement to Spider-Man's request. "I'll do what I can to help him get set straight on the right path."

The missing chunk of Spider-Man's mask exposes his extremely broad smile, "Awesome", but that at least helps to show Shota how genuine the vigilante's appreciation is when he says, "I knew I could count on you!"

Shota Aizawa looks up at the web patterned character with surprised wide eyes – that are surprisingly wide considering they're still acting up with dryness – he has to blink to hide his reaction and simultaneously make an attempt to moisten them. "Yeah, whatever, kid.." Despite being a fully grown ass man, he has to look away to try and pass off his embarrassment; he's fortunate that he has facial hair capable enough of hiding his light blush.

Also fortunately for him, Spider-Man so happens to look away in that same moment due to his own feelings of embarrassment. The webhead rubs behind his neck as he nervously chuckles. "Um.. I have one other request to make, actually.." Okay, maybe this is a UNfortunate development for Shota.

Shota tries not to show his frustration with a frown on his face but that's just the way his features work. He tries not to sound pissed off either but that's just the natural connotation of his voice. He's a bit snippy when he looks back at the vigilante and asks, "What is it now?"

Spider-Man slightly shrinks in on himself, even more embarrassed now. "I kinda also need a place to crash for a bit…"

Shota stares straight ahead at Spider-Man with a blank look for what seems like several minutes to an hour. "...Seriously?"

Spider-Man hangs his head shamefully. "I wish I were joking…"

Shota puts his own head in his hands. This isn't even one of his students for him to say he doesn't get paid enough for this because he isn't being paid for this one at all! Nevertheless, he gives in. With a wave, he beckons the boy to follow him inside. "Come with me then…"

Spider-Man cheerfully chips, "Thank you so much, Eraserhead!" Then hops down from his perched position and carries Hitoshi into the house ahead of them.

The two enter the foyer, where it's clear that shoes are meant to be left at the door, but Spider-Man doesn't really have any shoes to remove. He and Shota exchange a look over the dirt that's going to be tracked inside. Spider-Man shrugs while laughing nervously once again.

Then, the two of them hear a loud voice hollering from further in the house. "Shota, what took you so long? You'd better not be using the trash as an excuse to take smoke breaks again–" Just as Spider-Man places the voice, he sees for himself that it's Present Mic when the still active pro hero turns the corner in a set of pajamas.

Everyone goes quiet as they exchange glances with eachother. It's a strange look for all of them – a young illegal unlicensed vigilante holding another unconscious young man in front of two grown men who have been hiding the secret that they apparently live together – and that's just the brink of the iceberg.

Spider-Man feigns a cough to clear his throat before asking, an obviously answerable as it is rhetorical, question. "Um.. Did this just somehow manage to get even more awkward?"

As lanky and limber as he is, Sir Nighteye requires the foot space beneath his desk to cross one leg over the other. The extended tabletop above the gap doubles as a place for him to rest his elbows while he places his chin in a makeshift steeple fingered platform. It's a hunched posture that he assumes whenever deep in thought. Currently, he mulls over what his associate has shared with him. Nighteye looks up, his pair of glasses glinting as he asks, "They want you to be the director of a new division?"

"SUBdivision", Toshinori raises a finger to – quite literally – point out the specified distinction. Only after a moment of pause does he sheepishly shrug and smile to add more. "But yes, essentially so.."

Toshinori's former sidekick hums to himself. Nighteye then leans his head to one side, as though he is viewing this all from a different perspective angle. At that angle, he asks if it's the correct perception, "Is this for a publicity stunt?"

"Hey!", Toshinori feigns offense over the suggestion. Despite still having a sheepish smile and another shrug to boot. "..Okay, I thought the same thing at first too – but I'm capable!"

Nighteye smothers a smile by raising his hands higher up his face. "It saves us the time and trouble of jumping through hoops", he mumbles through the placement of his knuckles that now muffle his speech, "And we won't have to worry about oversight or remedial actions…"

Toshinori has worked with the other man long enough to by now understand this muffled speech clearly. Part of him wishes he didn't though since he only has bad news to give in return. "Well, there ARE some caveats per the terms of cooperation with your agency.."

Nighteye breathes out heavily through his nose. The dragon-like sigh steams up his glasses that he must remove them and use a handkerchief to clean the smudging. "Of course there is."

Toshinori takes a deep breath of his own before proceeding to share the HPSC's terms & conditions, "They found out about the records you were keeping on Young Toogata."

"What do they want with Mirio?", Nighteye sits up straight with a now intense stare fixed on Toshinori.

"No need to get defensive", Toshinori holds up his hands while trying to calm down his old partner, "They saw his potential much like you did–"

"And?", but Nighteye is terse and quite protective when it comes to his 'golden boy'.

Toshinori gives up on beating around the bush, since he understands Nighteye's feelings, what with his own relationship with Young Itsuka Kendo. He tells it to the still active pro hero straight. "They wish for him to work undercover as a 'Ghost' operative–"

"Out of the question", and he is met with more opposition from Nighteye – which is to be expected.

Toshinori switches tactics. He goes from the gentle & placating approach to a more stern tone of voice that leaves less room for argument, "Mirai–"

"They're looking for a replacement to fill the shoes of Hawks as another Vulture and I won't have it! Not for Mirio!", but Nighteye can be quite argumentative at times – Toshinori recalls the reason for their falling out when he had still been an active pro hero himself – he knows that it can be difficult to make Mirai budge on making a decision.

Toshinori settles into his seat. He knows that he is in it for the long run. "This is different", he tries telling Mirai that this is less about what the HPSC wants and more about the Nighteye Agency's beneficial gain.

Mirai fixes the retired pro hero with a glare that goes through his glasses, "How so?"

"We both know that Young Toogata would never cross the line that Hawks did", Toshinori takes his chance to defend the HPSC's request under these set of circumstances. And he goes even further with his defense by tacking on the fact that he's there to keep a close eye on things. "And this is under SHIELD's supervision, which I am director of."

Nighteye bristles a bit. He can't argue or refute that when it comes to trusting his colleague. Nevertheless… "I still don't like it", he continues to voice his qualms.

Toshinori nods in understanding. He has a little more tolerance for this than a business exec, having been a hero himself, and having Kendo to look out for. "Just.. give it some thought.. And besides, it's ultimately Toogata's decision."

Nighteye looks like he wants to say something more but puts a pin in that conversation for now. He sighs and instead moves on to the next order of business, "You said there are SOME caveats, implying that there's more than one – what else is there?"

Toshinori figures there's no point in holding back on this one either. "U.A Hero Course students are required to join the raid as part of their internship studies", he tells Nighteye what the HPSC Director had ordered should they choose to conduct this operation.

Nighteye is obviously opposed to this idea as well. "This is the Yakuza.." He already has a lack of patience for heroes in training and their capabilities in the field, but this is especially different from a backstreet brawl or a public safety patrol route.

"They'll be supervised", Toshinori assures Nighteye that the students won't be involved too deeply with the raid before making the general argument that anybody else might make, "And this is what they're being trained for anyways."

Nighteye shakes his head, clearly not convinced. But he holds out his hand and still says, "Let me see the list of prospective interns."

Toshinori blinks back his shock. "How did you know I had– ?"

Nighteye gives him a pointed look. This much is obvious. Even with their ranges of experience varying, it should be expected for the new director of a hero subdivision to come prepared.

"Right.." Toshinori produces the folder full of documents that he brought with him, just for this special occasion.

Nighteye flips the folder open and gives the file's contents a once-over. It doesn't take him long to have an inquiry about what it is he's reading. "Am I to believe it's a coincidence your protege is included on this list?"

Toshinori flinches. That sounded like an accusation of some kind. It may as well be one. "She needs the practical experience and I couldn't think of anyone better to recommend from the pool of students", he looks away as though he got caught trying to do something sneaky.

Nighteye huffs but shows no more disgruntlement than that. "Already pulling strings to get your way.. You're going to fit right in.." He closes the folder and sets it aside.

Toshinori flinches again. Still, he cannot look his old partner in the eyes. "That's not what I'm doing here, Mirai.." He tries to deny having any ulterior motives.

But Sir Nighteye stays skeptical of the situation. "No? If you don't believe that's the case then I believe it's time for you to wake up, All Might.." He fixes his glasses while staring ahead at the director of SHIELD that will be replacing the age old symbol of peace as a new figurehead for a time of war.

"Little Listener.." A distant voice, quieter than a whisper, makes him stir. He groans a bit over the disruptive noise. "Little Listener.." When that same sound persists, a little louder this time, he groans even more. He's trying to sleep here. "LITTLE LISTENER, IT'S TIME TO WAKE UP!"

Spider-Man springs from the bed to the ceiling, startled by the extreme shout that just came from Present Mic. "What the hell– ?!"

"Sorry to disturb your sleep, Spidey, but it'd have been disturbed much sooner if it were up to Shota" The pro hero grins while staring up at the now wide awake vigilante, proud of his handiwork despite the apology.

Remembering where he's at and why, Spider-Man calms down. He drops from the ceiling back onto the bed. "It's no problem, I-" But when he grabs his cellphone to see what's on its screen, he goes back to panicking. "I slept through all ten alarms that I set AND have missed phone calls!?"

Present Mic chuckles. "You were pretty tuckered out", he leaves out the part about Shota trying to wake the boy a few times earlier as well.

Spider-Man doesn't even have the time to explain why he was so exhausted – what with the symbiote then turned into Venom, and his mother – he's got a call to return. "Sorry, I've REALLY gotta give these a call back", he holds his phone up to silently request some privacy.

"No problem", Mic gives the vigilante a thumbs up; he understands well enough and heads for the exit, "I'll give you some privacy!" He accomplished his task of waking Spider-Man up anyways. "Just come on out when you're done!"

The phone rings a few times. Right when the line clicks over, Spidey doesn't wait for the other person. "It's Spider-Man", he gets straight to the point in order to save time, "Is everything alright?"

Mandalay, though surprised at first, responds with a sigh of relief. "I should be the one asking you that question", she doesn't sound worried about anything urgent and so Spider-Man feels as though he can stop worrying about his mother for the most part, "We grew concerned when not hearing anything back."

"Yeah, sorry about that, I got–" Spider-Man stops as he looks around his temporary quarters. "Doesn't matter.." The vigilante gets back on track. "Venom– Er, the threat – is down for the count", he pauses before realizing why it is that Mandalay must have reached out, "Sorry for not calling you off and giving the all clear sooner."

"That's a relief", Mandalay takes the news without any prying, which is nice. And to boot, she has her own positive report to share. "No interesting activity happened here, I'm sure you'll be happy to hear."

"I am", Spider-Man sits down on the end of the bed behind him as he physically relaxes upon now knowing his mom is safe. "Believe me, you have no idea how grateful I am.." He clears his throat before going on to offer a show of his appreciation, "If there's anything I can do in return–"

"Actually, there is – we're always in need of somebody to watch Kota when we're called into hero work and don't have the usual sitters", Mandalay surprises him when she takes him up on the offer almost immediately.

"Oh", Spider-Man blinks back his surprise before shrugging and accepting those terms. "Uh, yeah, I don't think that'd be an issue!" He figures it's the least that he could do.

"Great!", Mandalay then wraps up the call, "We'll see you around then!"

Spider-Man sets the phone down. "That went surprisingly well, all things considered.." It feels almost too easy that things worked out the way that they did. He can't complain much now, aside from still wanting to catch a few more Z's.

But the day beckons him. Even with the symbiote removed from Shinso, there's still a lot of stuff to be wrapped up and taken care of. He also has to get back over to the hospital to visit his mom. And there's now his girlfriend – which is weird for him to even think about having a girlfriend. And he's sure Hagakure will want a debrief of what happened too.

Spider-Man steps out of his room to see Shota Aizawa with a mug of coffee and a man bun, and Present Mic scrambling eggs from within the kitchen. The two of them notice the masked vigilante joining them and snap to attention.

Mic puts on a big broad smile. "Good morning, sleepyhead!"

"It's past the afternoon…" Aizawa doesn't.

Spider-Man spins around to look out the nearest window. He takes in what Aizawa said and double checks all of the clocks. Even so, he has to make sure with them to make sure he heard correctly. "It is?!"

Mic waves off the fact that it's late in the day, "Don't mind Shota – he's grouchy no matter what time of the day it is", not realizing that the time is meaningful to Spider-Man for a bigger reason.

He has to get to the hospital sooner rather than later. "Thank you for letting me stay overnight", he bows down at the waist while excusing himself, "I'll get out of your hair now!"

But Mic keeps missing cues and insists on the boy sticking around, "Don't be silly! Stay and have something to eat!"

Spider-Man struggles to politely turn down the request. "I- I really can't– I've got somewhere to be–" He stammers and points and fidgets and–

"Bye then", Aizawa offers the kid a chance to get out of there while in between sips of coffee.

But Mic's glares, even without an erasure quirk, can sometimes be intimidating. "Shota."

Aizawa sighs. He can only think of one way to appease them both while still staying logical about everything. "And what about the other house guest that you brought as baggage?", he asks about the other boy that Spider-Man dumped on their doorstep.

"Shinso.." Spider-Man's eyes grow wide when he remembers that he didn't stay there overnight alone. "Uh, did he– ?"

Aizawa throws a glance over his shoulder, in the direction of a closed door where Shinso must be staying. "He's not taking kindly to being here but has quieted down a significant amount."

Spider-Man sighs, but nods nonetheless, taking what he can get in this situation. "I'll check back later so that–"

"That may not be a good idea", Aizawa frowns as he sets his coffee mug aside.

His partner comes up alongside him to explain why in a more delicate manner than how Aizawa may have put it. "He doesn't have the best opinion of you, buddy."

Spider-Man looks between Aizawa and Present Mic. They're each giving him the same facial expression. "No.. I suppose that he wouldn't.." Spider-Man sadly looks away.

"Don't worry", Aizawa reaches across to place a hand of consolement on Spider-Man's shoulder, "He'll be well watched under our care" Mic does the same comforting gesture on the vigilante's other side.

Spider-Man smiles beneath his mask, "Thank you", he's grateful to have reliable allies when he needs them most.

In a police department full of fellow appointed officers, Sansa Tamakawa feels as though he has not one actual ally. If they knew the truth about him, then he's sure that they would turn against him. There'd be no more morning bagel and donut offerings. They'd slap a pair of handcuffs on him just as though he were any other criminal.

The cat-quirked cop scratches behind one of his ears. They've been attentively listening – eavesdropping – on case details about the developing Yakuza situation. He's been expecting all morning for the news to drop about Silvermane's passing. Sure, that'd mean Kai Chisaki overseeing the continuation of the illegal group, but there'd at least be a change. With momentum, things can finally get moving.

What he doesn't expect is to hear otherwise. Nobody reports any news or information about his Sin-Eater identity disrupting a late night operation of theirs. Hell, there's no contacts or calls sharing the story that Silvermane died. Instead, they're told that Silvermane is now plotting to make a move. Tamakawa turns his head, angling it to hear better. That Silvermane somehow survived is a problem in of itself but that the Yakuza is now planning to take an offensive initiative… he worries that Silvermane made a connection between him and the police precinct.

He has to get more involved if he's to keep better tabs on this. When the police station is given consent forms to join in on a raid to be conducted by the Nighteye Agency, he signs on to be apart of it.

The figurehead of the Yakuza strides through a hidden labyrinth of corridors. His gray suit matches the tonal stone walls lining either side of him as he walks. And a few paces behind the man, are two other high ranked Yakuza members. One of which was the next in line to replace him, dubbed 'Overhaul', until that future was snubbed short. The other is a bald man dressed as well as the other two.

The bald Yakuza member clears his throat as he tries to flag down his superior, "Silvermane–"

"Just a moment", but Silvermane doesn't stop – he only spares a wave back over his shoulder, which is actually meant to signal for the other Yakuza ranker to be the one that stops.

Despite being lower in command, this Yakuza member doesn't back off. He quickens his pace to keep up with Silvermane. "This can't wait–"

Which results in an immediate form of punishment. "It will because I demand it!" Silvermane snatches the lower ranking Yakuza member by the throat, and with the strength of a youthful teenager, snaps the man's neck.

Overhaul stares down at the corpse of his now dead colleague when the body hits the floor with a thud. He has to resist the urge to scratch himself when his body breaks out in hives. Despite his line of work involving a lot of death & blood, he's never had much of a taste to embellish in this part of the gig.

Silvermane takes notice of the young heir behind him and quirks a brow, "You're here too?"

"Boss..", Overhaul is reluctant to speak but does so anyways, "There's an urgent matter."

Silvermane sneers. But, Overhaul is different from his other subordinates. He won't so dismissively dispatch Overhaul. "I'm supposed to see Eri right now so this had better be as urgent as you make it seem", he instead voices his displeasure over the disruption that has been brought to his attention.

To which Overhaul wastes no time putting it straight and simple. "We've received word that the heroes and the police are about to pay us a visit", he warns his boss of an impending attack that they must prepare for.

"Oh-ho! Are they now?" Silvermane's sneer shifts into a smirk. After the declaration of war that he put out, he sees that it worked to put some fear in people. "It looks like we've lit a fire under their ass."

Overhaul has served under Silvermane for so long that he presumes to know how the man will respond to this, "Are we going to leave through the tunnels?"

"No", but he's wrong. Who Overhaul sees before him now is someone different from an aged & experienced Yakuza elder. "This is what we've been waiting for", Silvermane has become an ambitious & bloodthirsty teenager, "Prepare for war!"

Overhaul is surprised to see the calculative man that he once knew become … this. "Boss?", he starts to see a reflection of himself and wonders who it is that he's chosen to follow truly all over again – his boss, or himself.

"This is what you wanted, right?" Silvermane reminds the young heir that the plan to rise from the ashes by force had been apart of the Yakuza's overhauling initiative. So, they prepare for an extreme overhaul. "Let's show them our strength!"

Inko Midoriya looks up from the light novelette in her hands once she hears someone enter her room. At long last, she sees her son has returned. Whatever tenseness had been keeping her on high alert since he left so abruptly and strangely starts to fade as relief replaces her worries. She closes the book that she had been reading to pass the time so that she can address things properly with him though, since his return doesn't settle the situation ever still.

Izuku falters for a second when he sees her up and aware while sitting up straight on her cot, "Mom! You're awake!", he's surprised since he was fully expecting her to still be using her recovery period as time to rest.

"I could hardly sleep a wink with the way you ran out", although Inko's explanation does clear up his inquiry rather quickly. It makes a lot of sense – but it hits Izuku heavily even if that is the case.

"Sorry", he shamefully turns his face away as he apologizes for putting her through yet another tough time – all because of his doublelife – when he looks back at her, he looks her in the eyes. "That must have been .. weird.."

Inko sighs since she's somewhat gotten used to these shenanigans, "No weirder than usual", but her tone is still laced with a prompting quality to make him explain it all.

And Izuku, this time, nods in agreement that he owes her that debt. He grabs a chair so that he can sit by her bedside. He DID tell her that they'd be having this much needed talk. "Maybe it's about time that I explain everything", he steels and prepares himself for it to happen at long last.

Inko notices her son's wariness to move forward with the conversation though and hesitates herself. She doesn't know what to expect and it's getting kinda scary. So she adopts Izuku's skill of making light out of these moods with a joke, "It's a good thing that I'm already in the hospital should I have a heart attack."

But Izuku doesn't laugh. His eyes go wide when he looks up, appearing genuinely concerned that such a thing could happen. "Don't even joke about that!"

Inko's eyes match the size of her son's when she sees how serious he's gotten. "Oh God.. Is that actually a possibility? What have you done, Izuku? Are you in a gang?!"

"A gang?! What?! No!", Izuku shakes his head while trying to deny the explanation that his mother gave a guess at.

She sees how flustered he's getting and pries him for the truth, "Izuku.."

"I'm not in a gang, mom!" Izuku reiterates that she's guessing wrong though. Again, he looks her in the eyes so that she knows he is telling her the truth.

Inko leans back but sighs with a resigned acceptance. She can see that he's struggling with giving her details, so she proceeds to help him along by letting him know that she's had suspicions of suspecting something already. "I'm no fool, Izuku.. I've noticed the bruises.. I thought you were being bullied again that I contacted the school and spoke to Mitsuki about Katsuki but.."

"You did that.. ?", Izuku's mouth goes agape as his words trail off – he doesn't know what more to say.

"I'm your mother", Inko fixes him with a stern stare so that he can see how serious she is about his safety and well-being. Behind that stern stare, he sees the truth that she IS his mother, and that she CARES deeply for him.

"I should have expected as much", he tries not to laugh about it when realizing how foolish he was for not thinking that his overprotective mom might not notice things more than he thought she would, "Sorry for making you worry."

Inko gives him a single nod to let him know that she accepts his apology. And then, she prompts him to tell her what he promised he would tell her, "So what's the real reason my son is always receiving injuries as of late?"

Izuku swallows something, and he can feel it landing in his stomach when he does. "Okay.. Here goes.." He throws a look over his shoulder to make sure no doctors or nurses overhear. "Mom.." And then.. He raises up his shirt just enough for her to see the web patterned costume that he's wearing underneath it. He tells her, "I'm Spider-Man."

Inko stares at him, her face a blank slate lacking any emotion. She's quiet. Eerily quiet. Izuku was expecting shouting, screaming, crying, ANYTHING else other than that. She instead responds with a whisper, "..You're.. Spider-Man?"

Izuku gives his mother an anxious nod. He can hardly form any words himself to say at this current moment. Maybe she's still processing things. Heck, HE'S still processing that she's probably still processing things.

And then comes the anticipated yelling. "You.. You're breaking the law to– ?!"

Izuku hurriedly makes an attempt to stop her from shouting, "It's not–"

"Please act like you've got some sense", but the tone that she takes with him is honestly worse than if she were to have kept shouting.

A warning. A danger. He needs to act like he has some sense. But the kind his mom gave him, that makes him stay in his seat. Not the kind the spider gave to him, that makes him want to jump out of his skin.

Izuku stays firmly planted to his seat. His mouth tightens but he still has to try to communicate to her what he has to say, "Mom.."

"I know you've always aspired to be a hero but doing so without a license AND keeping it hidden from me?! Have you lost your mind, boy?!" Inko doesn't let him talk much though. She's back to shouting again.

Izuku shouts back. "I had to take responsibility, mom!" He stands up from his seat so strongly and quickly that his chair falls backwards behind him. The loud clattering of it hitting the floor is followed by sheer silence. Izuku quiets down as he says, "I had to take responsibility.. And make sure that what happened to dad would never happen to anyone else ever again.."

Inko's anger subsides as she takes in what her son just said. "What happened to Hisashi was not your fault–"

"It was", Izuku looks at her with a resolute look on his face. And then, his face softens into something more than just simple sadness. "Mom, I'm responsible for what happened to dad."

Inko's voice catches in her throat. She almost chokes on her own words while working on a way to work up enough courage to ask about what he said. "..What do you mean.. ?

Izuku picks his chair up from off the floor so that he can sit back down. He HAS to sit down. For this, he has to. "I wanted to tell you so many times.."

Inko's eyes water as they watch her son express such sorrow. She's almost too scared to ask him about it. "Izuku, what happened?" But she does.

"I.. I followed the law.. I saw a villain running past me and I thought to myself 'it's not my problem' because, well, I don't have a license.." Izuku stares ahead as though he's watching the villain run by him all over again. He closes his eyes – no, he clamps them shut – his face screws into a face of frustration. "I could have stopped the guy.. I have the power to stand up and do the right thing.. But I stood by and let em go.." Izuku's eyes reopen like floodgates raising up, allowing tears to pool out. "Then the villain came across dad and.. You know dad.. He wasn't going to let a villain off easy to hurt somebody else.."

Inko holds a hand over her heart. "Izuku.. That's enough.." She isn't sure if her heart just skipped a beat or if it's about to pound right through her chest, but the possibility of having a heart attack becomes a reality all too suddenly.

Izuku's voice sounds about as broken as his expression when he finishes telling her the story of his origin. "Dad died that night for being the only one who did the right thing."

Inko swallows a sob. She won't allow herself to cry. She's cried enough for that foolish – yet amazing – husband of hers. She misses him as much as she still knows him, just as Izuku had said. And she can see him in her son. "You've been carrying that with you all this time?"

"I have to", Izuku swallows down his own sorrow so that he can look at his mother with the seriousness that comes with what he's saying, "It's what defines me – what makes me who I am."

Inko reaches forward, making an attempt to take his hand in her own. "And that's why you're Spider-Man.. Why you.. ? Because you think it's your fault– ?"

"It is my fault!", Izuku pulls back when he stands up again, "I could have stopped him!"

Inko pushes herself up just enough to still be able to take his hand. "It's not your fault–"

"No! You don't understand! He was– He was right there in front of me!", Izuku tugs on it so that he can pull free from her. He resists her affectionate consolation.

"You shouldn't blame yourself", but a mother's love is more powerful than any spider given strength and she pulls him into a hug.

"I can't help it.." Izuku leans into his mom's gentle & warm embrace. He murmurs into her, "I do what I do because I have to", before pulling back with a slight sniffle. "And I think.. I think.. Dad would probably have loved it."

Inko looks at her son. She could always see Hisashi in him, but now, she sees the man that her boy is growing into more than ever. She sniffles too, "He would", while giving Izuku a somber smile.

Izuku shares her sanguine smile. "He would, right?" His eyes glisten from tears that are on the verge of spilling over.

She ducks her head down, resigned as she says, "He would…"

Izuku looks down too, keeping his smile even if it shortens into something much smaller. Despite all that he's been through as Spider-Man – the difficulty and the hardship – he knows that it's worth the effort of trying.

Inko's smile recedes completely. Even without knowing the full details behind her son's lifestyle as a vigilante, she has a good idea of what that hardship must be like. And worse yet.. She can anticipate that he will only have more of that hardship to come.

But Izuku tells her, "Then you know why I can't stop", and she knows why he can't stop regardless of that hardship that has come to pass and is still yet to come.

Inko looks up instead of down – towards where she imagines her husband is watching them. "I guess you can't then.." She huffs out a laugh while thinking of the talk they'd be having right now if they could. Inko sighs before looking back down at her son, "But there's going to be rules now!"

Izuku blinks, surprised. "Rules?"

Inko nods. "For starters, you're getting therapy."

Izuku rolls his eyes as he starts to groan in complaint. "Agh, mooomm–"

"No arguing!", but Inko's sharp snap that may as well be the sound of a whip cracking makes him cease his protests immediately.

"Yes ma'am!" Izuku bows down to show his mother the respect that she deserves.

Inko sighs and shakes her head. Before adding on the next rule of their future arrangements, "And.. And I want you to tell me everything else too."

Izuku looks up from his bent over position, startled as he is surprised. "..Are you sure?"

"From start to finish", Inko fixes her face with a firm expression of being resolved as though to answer any questions of doubt he or she herself may have, "I want to know what you've been through."

Izuku falters. His voice goes quieter while he hangs his head, "I.. I don't want to make you worry or to become afraid.."

Inko would laugh if her son weren't so serious. Truth be told, she's already plenty worried and scared enough for him. Afterall, he's putting himself in harm's way without any proper heroics training. But his mental safety is just as important as his physical safety. "And I don't want you thinking you're alone in this."

Izuku blinks back whatever tears might have residually remained. "I'm not alone, mom.." He starts to smile again; he thinks of his allies and how he's coming a longer way with them more than he had with even Naomasa or Tokuda. He has Hagakure. He has Jirou and Aizawa. And he has his mom. He's not alone. "Not anymore."

AUTHOR NOTES

Some of you called it that All Might would become the 'Nick Fury' of this story after losing his eye! And I couldn't pass up an equivalent of the 'Hydra within S.H.I.E.L.D' quality to it what with the HPSC already having been compromised (not that it wasn't already morally corrupt to begin with!)

And now Inko knows the truth about Izuku being Spider-Man! I always loved the conversation May and Peter had in the OG Ultimate comics, so I drew heavy inspiration from that moment. Personally, I don't often like so many people knowing hero's identities since that defeats the purpose of them being SECRET identities (plus I guess I may be in the low margin of people that actually enjoys the shenanigans that comes with having to keep a secret identity) but I suppose it had to happen at some point.

The fallout of Venom and the menace of Silvermane are looming in the background to begin this new arc as well. I'm purposely keeping it vague for the time being what Izuku did about the symbiote but you can maybe already see where things are heading with Shinso. Silvermane's situation is much more straight forward with close to canon activity in terms of what transpires with the Yakuza.

As for the story's romance subplots, I do plan on developing things between Kyoka & Izuku to make that pairing more favorable and try not to feel too bad for Toru since she'll have a pretty satisfying conclusion to her character what with I've got planned.

-Courtesy of your friendly neighborhood author!