Chapter 42: Midoriya Izuku XXXVIII

A/N: I'll leave the chapter to speak for itself. Enjoy!

Being the focus of a three way standoff is nothing to scoff at. Especially when Izuku knows that the individuals at both ends have the power to leave him as a smear of blood and gore all over the floors and walls with the simple flick of a finger.

Sure, Melissa Shield may want to pummel him because of the state of her father on the ground. Kendou Itsuka would want to apprehend him for his connection to the League. And Wolfram will definitely strangle him when the man finds out what he's done to the Quirk Amplification Device.

And yet, Izuku maintains the essence of calm. This is all still part of his plan, after all. And he'd rather face Nezu again than let his plan all fall apart now, after he's gotten so far.

And so he walks forward — paying special attention to Kendou as she tenses, and the subtle way Wolfram's hand gravitates down to his waistline, to his gun — and pulls David Shield up to his knees. There isn't much of a reaction on anyone's part; that is, until Izuku retrieves a knife from his belt and aims it directly at the throat of his newfound hostage.

Wolfram narrows his eyes, no doubt calculating the risks of the situation at hand. Kendou takes on a face of fury, eyes narrowing in rage at Izuku's display. Expected reactions, of course. And as a result, the two powerhouses remain at bay for the time being.

But as for Melissa? She gasps, tears beginning to stream down her face as she herself falls to her own knees.

The sight causes Izuku to mentally berate himself for the anguish he's causing to the innocent and bright girl, but he hastily reminds himself that this is the only way. It's not like he'll actually follow through with his threat, after all. But the others don't know that, and that's what counts.

"Wolfram." Izuku nods to the man, utilizing a deep, guttural, and yet commanding voice that all but demands attention.

"Battle Fist." Izuku nods to Kendou, calling her by her chosen hero name.

"And Miss Shield," Izuku says, lowering his voice for just a moment.

"To what do I owe the pleasure of three such celebrities knocking upon my doorstep on this fateful night?"

Kendou takes a step forward. "You—!"

"Tut tut," Izuku interrupts, reverberating his voice around the room. He tightens his grip on David Shield, pressing the knife ever so slightly against his neck. Luckily for Izuku, with the state of the man, he's in no condition to fight back. No risk of the man doing anything stupid either; wouldn't want to risk his daughter having a front row seat of his death after all he's done, after all.

"All three of you best stay where you are. Don't want the good scientist to meet an untimely end, hmm?"

Izuku shifts his head towards Wolfram. "That includes you too, Mister Mercenary."

Wolfram sneers. "And what's that supposed to mean?"

"Don't think that I don't know what you're doing. I can hear your hand crawling ever closer to that gun of yours."

Wolfram twitches a bit, at that display of words reverberating through his bones. He attempts to hide his reaction with a sneer. "If you think that I care for—"

"He's not integral to your plans, yes, I'm aware. But I am aware that you'd rather have him than not, as a way to mass produce the Quirk Amplification Device for profit and for the fitting of your own team."

Wolfram opens his mouth to speak, but Izuku cuts him off. "Yes, you can ditch that secondary objective as long as you retrieve the primary. But, unfortunately for you…"

Wolfram growls. "What?"

Izuku simply gestures his head over to the remains of the device on the floor. When Wolfram looks over at the scattered scrap, it doesn't take long for him to realize what he's looking at.

"You lunatic! Do you have any idea what you've—"

Izuku cuts Wolfram off again, but this time erases the words as they come out from the man's mouth. When he realizes what's happened, the man explodes in anger. And yet, he still doesn't move from his spot. He now understands what's at stake, after all. He needs David if he wants any chance of getting even a smidge of what he wants, so he won't risk him.

Good. As for the others…

"Miss Shield, Battle Fist. As I'm sure you greatly value the life of the man I have in my arms, you understand when I say that you'll let me go, yes? I promise that he'll escape unscathed if you do."

Kendou huffs. "And what's to say that you'll actually follow through?"

"Because I'm an individual of their word. And if it turns out I'm not… Well, you'll know for next time, hmm?"

"There won't be a next time," Kendou says, words steady and harsh. "You need to pay for what you did to 1-A. Even if you somehow escape my grasp, All Might's downstairs. He'll—"

Izuku cuts her off this time. Unlike Wolfram, Kendou sees the uselessness of struggling out in anger and simply shuts herself up.

"Good," Izuku announces. He lets up on Wolfram's silence, the man having stopped his little tantrum just a little bit before. "Same goes to you, Wolfram. You let me go, David here goes free. I escape and I get out of your way."

He shares a look between Wolfram and Kendou. "And then all you two will have to do is battle it out. Either way, David Shield here will be out of my hands and be free for the taking once the victor arises. Sounds fair, doesn't it?"

Izuku doesn't wait for a response. He drags David up to his feet — trusting the man not to make a fuss — keeps one hand occupied with a knife and up to the man's neck, and keeps his other to clutch to his suitcase. And he begins walking, ever so slowly, keeping tabs on even the slightest of movements from his three opponents. After all, even Melissa could blow the delicate situation.

He gets halfway when he hears a mouth open. Of course, Wolfram's the one to break the silence. However, what Izuku comes to hear isn't quite what he expects to spew forth from the man's mouth.

"You're palling around with the League of Villains, aren't you?"

Izuku doesn't stop moving. Still, he decides that there's no harm in answering if it'll placate Wolfram just a little longer. "A minor setback in my plans. But otherwise, yes. Your point?"

"Strange decision, that is. After all, weren't you a vigilante at one point? Surely joining something called the 'League of Villains' is antithesis to you goals?"

" I'm here for my own reasons, you merc. Unlike you, I'm not here for money or power, but for justice — no matter how it needs to be brought along. Now is there a point to this whole thing or—"

Wolfram growls. "I don't know what kind of game All For One's playing here, but I don't like it one bit."

Interest peaked, Izuku plays along. He never lets up on his observations however, and makes sure to take one careful step after the other. A simple innocent misstep could prove his doom, after all. "Oho? Heard of All For One, have you? What's he got to do with this"

Izuku takes note of the wait Kendou pales, her heart rate skyrocketing and her hands clamming up. And what does All For One mean to you, Kendou Itsuka? A thought to file for later.

"Know him?" Wolfram scoffs. "He's the one who hired me for this job, you dimwitted brat! And right now I'm trying to figure out why it is that you're here working against me when we work for the same guy!"

Ah. Izuku can't help letting out a mental chuckle. I see where he was going with this.

No doubt, Wolfram's plan had been to throw Izuku off with this tidbit of information. He doesn't know why Izuku had joined the League (let alone the fact that he's been a technical founding member since it's birth years ago). Likely, he's gambling for that sense of misguidance; Whisper as a figure had been effective at his role at cranking down minor villains pre-League after all.

Plus, it wouldn't make sense (at least to him) for All For One to send one of his own agents to interfere with an operation that he himself had set into motion. So the only reason that Izuku, a former vigilante, should even be around to thwart some thieves would be because he felt a call back to his roots. And to learn that his new boss was responsible for all the wanton destruction of the night? A definite eye-opening experience, enough to shock an unsuspecting individual.

Not bad. Not bad at all, given the scant clues there are to see. Too bad for him, though…

Of course, unlike what Wolfram believes he thinks, Izuku isn't even close to being in a position to experience a sudden and debilitating internal conflict. Rather, now he's all too aware of the machinations that have led him here.

Things begin to click into place in his mind, and Izuku berates himself for not piecing it together sooner. It's obvious in hindsight: Sensei's blatant insistence that he go to I-Island, a convenient existence of a device that could aid All Might and conversely hinder Sensei's plans, the fact that someone close to All Might would want to commit a grievous crime… Sensei wouldn't miss out on something like that. His fingers are all over the operation.

As for the reason that he hired an experienced mercenary team to steal a valuable device and sent Izuku to the island without any foreknowledge or warning of the ongoing operation?

A test. Whether to gauge my growth or something else…

"Hmph," Izuku chuckles as he trudges on, unerred. "Not a bad guess there. However, your intuition is off. Shame; you won't be getting your way tonight, it seems." Wolfram's irritation that his gamble didn't play out is evident on his face.

Eventually, Izuku reaches the point where he's but a meter away from the frozen Melissa who's still collapsed on the floor on her knees. Father and daughter share a look, one that wordlessly promises that everything will be alright. It's an expression that Izuku wishes he could've once shared with his own mother.

He casts away the thought though, preparing for the next step. The remaining security bots are rushing up the elevator shaft as he thinks. And so, much to the others' surprise, he stops in his tracks.

"What are you—"

Wolfram doesn't have the time to finish his sentence. The swarm of robots rush into the room, the hundreds of metallic chassis silently filling in with the assistance of Izuku's quirk. Caught by surprise, both Kendou and Wolfram spring into action — they can't do anything about the fact that Izuku's carried away and down the elevator shaft by his own entourage of the robots, with David and Melissa Shield in tow.

The girl had struggles of course, screaming and kicking upon her unexpected abduction. But there is little she can do against a horde of anti-personnel robots dead set on taking her.

"Don't worry, Battle Fist," Izuku announces to the room as he escapes. "She's in safe hands. Focus on your battle, will you? Oh! And do remember to watch out for his handgun."

The hesitation is clear on her face, but nevertheless Izuku hears that expression morph from one of uncertainty to one of determination. She turns to face Wolfram, lets out a battle cry, and lunges forth.

Izuku gives the girl a good chance against Wolfram, given what he's seen of her so far. Wolfram may be in his environment, surrounded by metal and all, but Kendou is stronger and faster. She will pull through. And even if not… It's like she said. All Might's not far behind.

The robots descend over fifty floors — far enough away from the ensuing battle above, far enough away from All Might still cleaning things up on the ground floor, and just far enough away to give Izuku ample time to run if one of the Yuuei students decided to come for him. The robots deposit the trio on the floor, David Shield crumbling against a nearby wall as his daughter scrambles over to tend to him.

Once she reassures herself that David isn't in any life-threatening condition, she turns a glare towards Izuku, who's simply standing a few meters away.

"Relax, Miss Shield," Izuku mutters before the girl herself can speak up, using a much more soothing voice than the one he had used just before. No further harm shall come to you or your father tonight. In fact, at the moment you're better off. Much safer down here than up there in the same room where a major battle is taking place, no? You've seen what your friend is capable of, after all."

Melissa blinks, stunned. "Y-You mean—"

"But you really should talk to your father," Izuku says, interrupting her. "He has a lot of explaining to do."

The disheveled man gulps, paling upon the mention of his misdeeds.

And just like that, the attention on him is gone, Melissa swiveling her head towards her father. "Papa? What does he mean?"

Izuku nods to himself. "I'll keep a few more of the security drones here, just in case." He turns away, moving towards the elevator shaft. "I hope the rest of your night is a pleasant one, you two. It'll perhaps be the most peace you'll come to in a long while.

He jumps down the elevator shaft, the rest of security drones under his command breaking his fall. And with that, the swarm carries him out of the building, past the preoccupied pro heroes on the ground floor, down, deep through the island's maintenance tunnels, and into the dark of the night.

As he trails away, he can hear the decisive crackling of bones that decides the battle on the hundredth floor. Despite Wolfram's surprise (seems Sensei had given him another quirk) Kendou reigns as the victor in the end.

He can't help but take up a smile behind his mask, the ever slight feeling of success and rallying accomplishment radiating in his mind, elevating the thought that his plan has come to fruition. It comes to him as strange at first, but he soom recognizes it for what it is; relief.

His first operation out in the field, tailored by his own fingers, crafted without the guiding hands Sensei, and enacted step by step without the ever so caring aid of Kurogiri.

He knows his own capabilities now. Sensei wouldn't pull any punches — whether he actually wanted the Quirk Amplification Device, or if this whole scenario was just one big setup for a test, Izuku faced the real deal here. There was always the threat of defeat, of death; he wouldn't put it past his Sensei to make it as such.

And it's with that that a tinge of acceptance fills his mind. He can rise to the occasion; he doesn't need the League, even if he'll remain with them a while longer. All he has to do now is wait until the right moment. And then…

Hidden amongst the droves of security drones, Izuku has no problem absconding himself back to his hotel room. No one notices him sequestered in their mass during his return trip, and no one has a reason to suspect a wanted criminal to be hiding amongst the reliable enforcers of the island's trusted defense system. After all, to the rest of the island, nothing of importance has happened tonight. It's hard to notice a disturbance on the island's central tower when it's built like a fortress inside and out, after all.

He doesn't even need to worry about witnesses. With his hacking of the tower from within it's most secure depths, he has gained control over the cameras of the island. As such, a simple wipe is all it takes to erase his existence.

Plus, with All Might running low on time, Kendou so beat up after her victory over Wolfram, Todoroki knowing to cover for him (and likely pulling Yoarashi along), and Bakugou still having problems with his recent… alterations, there isn't anyone in a position to seek him out in the wake of his escape. Not even the other Yuuei students, for their quirks are ill-suited for such a chase against a still battle-ready Whisper.

So it's a simple thing, having the robots deposit him near an exit of the tunnels near his hotel. He takes his costume off, transforming back into the boring and meek persona of Michimoto Jakku.

A few commands via his laptop send his robotic guards away back to their posts, memories of the night scrubbed from their databanks. Using his quirk to ensure nobody up above is looking in his general direction, he rises through a manhole cover just behind his hotel. Entering through the back entrance, using his quirk to traverse the halls to ensure that he doesn't bump into any stragglers, he enters his room without a problem.

With a sigh of relief he slams the door shut. He then stumbles over to his bed, tucks his suitcase away, and collapses into his sheets. As his mind basks in the success of his mission, his mind slowly slows down. He falls into a content slumber within minutes.

He's too tired, too thrilled, and too overcome with awe and disbelief to notice the faint scent of lavender and vanilla lingering in the air.

The rising sun's peeking through his blinds when Izuku regrettably wakes up to the door of his room slamming open.

"MICHI-KUN!"

Izuku groans, slowly turning in his bed. When his eyes meet those of Hatsume, he grumbles and turns back around.

His intentions to remain in bed are either ignored entirely or go right over Hatsume's head, however, for the eccentric inventor nevertheless marches over to his bed and begins shaking him uncontrollably.

"You're not dead, are you?!" Hatsume yells. "Injured? Scrapes? Anything of the sort?"

Izuku groggily shakes his head into wakefulness (barely). "What the heck are you on about?"

"You're alright!" Hatsume lets out a sigh. "Last night! There was that whole break-in at the tower! There was this ferrokinetic dude, and his minions, and this vigilante! The villains broke in and for some reason David Shield himself was involved! But then the vigilante was apparently the same one who was with the League during the USJ is Kendou's telling the truth. But he didn't really do anything! He was even nice to Melissa for a bit!"

It's only now in Izuku's mind that he realizes the glaringly obvious potential misstep he's made.

Izuku clears his throat. "Really now?" he says, feigning incredulity and surprise.

"Mhm!" Hatsume vigorously nods her head. "Are you telling me that you didn't notice anything at all? I thought that you were looking at the island's systems and all that!"

"Ah. Yes, that. I sort of got locked out last night. I had a mini heart attack; thought I had gotten caught. But then all those security drones just covered the streets telling everyone around to stay indoors, and well… I was just happy that some alert was for something else instead of something I did."

Hatsume blinks. "Seriously? Maaannn. You should've come! We never ended up going to the gala! We could've showcased my inventions together!"

Izuku shrugs. "It's better that I didn't. Sounds like way too much excitement to me." Izuku frowns, letting out a sigh. "There's a reason I left Yuuei, after all. And ended up diverting away from the hero course."

There's a few moments of silence, which are broken when Izuku clears his throat. "Anyways." He looks up at Hatsume. "Are you alright? Nothing bad happen to you?"

Nothing bad had happened to her, of course. He had had tabs on her ever since he entered the tower. And not a single robot ever came near her. Just as planned, with the plethora of things Izuku essentially forced her to bring on her person.

"Nope! And even better, Melissa got to see all sorts of my babies in action! I'm really grateful for you suggesting to bring what I did! It was almost especially tailored to fighting by robotic goons!"

Izuku lets out a laugh. "That so? Lucky you then, hmm?"

Hatsume nods. "Okay! Well, I'll tell you more later! I'm gonna take a shower first!" She runs off in said direction of the bathroom, her departure akin to a tornado. Leaving a mess (a painfully awake Izuku) and leaving just as quickly as she arrived.

"And don't forget to shut the door before you start stripping!" Izuku yells out.

"Okay!"

As the bathroom door closes, Izuku can't help but let out a sigh in relief.

And she hasn't caught on… Good. I'm... I'm not sure what I would've done if she had. He shakes his head. No use thinking of what-ifs. Guess I still need to work on my planning.

Izuku stretches and hops out of bed. He still has a few days left on the island, and he plans to make the most of them. Aside from the sights and going along with whatever Hatsume drags him along to, there's still one thing that he has to do.

Now, where is that laptop of mine? I still have some new testing data and diagrams to go over, after all…

A/N: A bit short, but alas here's the end of the arc. Up next… Another POV Switch.