Chapter 176 - 19-21

Chapter 19: In which internships, but More!

KAMINO:

Tomura resisted the urge to scoff as the Hero Killer walked into the bar, scowling. When he had done his research into Villains, the man had seemed cool at first, and was certainly popular, but looking at him now made him look less like an imposing enforcer of justice and more like a rabid hobo.

It looked like Sensei's help was doing his work at least.

(Sensei wasn't all too quick to offer his help in tiring the Hero killer out, not after his last failed plan. But… Tomura had been way more aware as of late. Kurogiri said that his failure was a 'major developmental experience' or whatever, but Tomura wasn't sure. Whatever it was wasn't important, though.)

Tomura huffed, sitting up from his slouch to look the man in the eye.

"So, the great Hero Killer blesses us with his presence."

The man in front of him glared. On Tomura's right, Dabi crossed his arms, returning the glare.

(As of now, Dabi, Kurogiri, and Magne were the only people he could trust to properly represent the League. Mustard was tiny, Twice was fine enough but his personality didn't mix well with meetings, and Compress was… out doing whatever Compress did. Maybe Giran's promised Rouges would be better, but Tomura wasn't going to bet on it, and he wasn't even considering either of the offered Berserkers as anything other the cannon fodder.)

"Say your piece. I wish to return home quickly."

About as blunt as expected. "I want your help with my League. You would be an excellent tool for boss battles."

He couldn't have the man join the league proper. Loathe as he was to admit it, he had been forced to consider the long-term consequences of his choices now that he was assembling a proper group, considering that if he destroyed the Heroes, there had to be an after. Sensei had taught him a few lessons about leadership when prompted (it was the most excited he had seen his teacher in a long while, which helped) and the number one thing the man had pressed was to create an image.

Needless to say, Stain was not typically synchronistic with being popular, even with society's dregs.

Stain scoffed. "You want my help. What are you after, then?"

Tomura felt the red-hot rage swelling in the corners of his vision, but he dispelled it. "I want to destroy what I don't like. All Might, the Heroes… all of those idiots."

Stain seemed to contemplate Tomura's words. They were blunt, but they were true.

Suddenly, the man burst forward, knives drawn. Before Tomura could react, he, alongside Dabi and Kurogiri, had been slashed. A moment later, he was on the ground, forced down by the killer, while his two-party members were frozen as if dragged down by an unknown force.

"Tomura… I cannot move!"

"You lack the conviction necessary to do what needs to be done if your only wish is for destruction!"

Dabi glared, his own arm lightly scratched, forcing him to a kneel. "Like you're one to talk, asshole… Mister killing four people a city and changing nothing…"

Stain glared, weary of other members of the league. Fortunately, Tomura had told them to stay put no matter how dicey it looked.

Before he could react, Tomura forced himself to move despite the painful wound on his arm, grabbing the knife Stain was holding onto him with, scowling as it evaporated into dust. "Conviction? As if I need any of that. All I want to do is crush what stands in my way… and if that includes you… so be it."

Stain's eyes widened briefly before the scowl returned. A moment later, Kurogiri stumbled, released from whatever hold Stain had on him.

"Hmph. As of now, you are destined for failure… but there is potential in you yet, so you won't be purged. Return me to Hosu. I have work that needs doing."

Kurogiri complied, opening a portal. Without another word, Stain slipped through. A moment later, Tomura felt control return to his body, and he scowled. "Did that portal really go to Hosu?"

Kurogiri nodded, already moving to begin clean-up despite his arm wound. "Yes. Loathe as I am to admit it… even if we failed to recruit him, the Hero Killer is a useful asset."

The pink gas that had only just begun entering the room dissipated through the windows, and the rest of Tomura's party members skulked in.

"Kurogiri should have dropped that asshole into the ocean." "Wow, he was scary… what an asshat!"

Dabi scowled, moving to accept the offered bandage from Magne, who had grabbed the first aid kit. "The guy certainly seems less cool in person… never did like him that much."

Tomura scowled, sitting down on the bar stool with a huff.

Magne looked to him with a raised eyebrow. "Welp. Recruitment failed, Boss. What now?"

Tomura took a breath, dissipating his desire to scream and shout. "If Stain won't cooperate… we'll just have to go for plan B."

Above him, the TV switched on to reveal a faint static. "I see. You will be going for the other plan you told me about then, Tomura?"

He nodded. "Yes, Sensei. Do we have any Noumu?"

The faint voice of the annoying doctor picked up over the speaker. "Currently, three Noumu of the cannon fodder variety are available. Wing, Tongue, and Bulk. None as stronger as Buster, yet."

Tomura could feel the frustration over the loss of the last Noumu, but he nodded. "Good. When will the Hero Killer strike again?"

"From the looks of it… Friday."

"Then… that's when we'll turn him into a Martyr."

~---INTERNSHIPS: SETTING THE STANDARD---~

MUSUTAFU (AGAIN):

THREE DAYS INTO INTERNSHIPS (WEDNESDAY)

*WHAM*

"A solid engine boosted kick with emphasis on the knees… my dataset is coming together nicely! Thanks, Iida-kun!"

Scribbling numbers into his most recent notepad (at this point, notebooks were becoming insufficient; he had started using individual pads for each entry before digitally transcribing them. It was good practice for the future, at least), Izuku looked up to his new analysis subject.

Iida was a friendly person, and one Izuku didn't find himself feeling too bad about seeing every so often during the last few days. Nedzu kept him busy with all sorts of things, but every so often his activities would intercede with the speedster's. Time seemed to slowly be helping the boy's grief, at least. (But… if he was this loud when he was sad, how loud was he when he was happy!?)

(They had bonded somewhat over their status as vice-reps. Iida had suggested trying to organise meetings between all of the reps of each of the three first year Hero courses. He hadn't.... objected, per say.)

Iida smiled (Out of view of teachers, it was smaller, a little more forlorn. Still fake, but Izuku couldn't really blame the boy). "It is no worry, Midoriya-kun! Analysis from you will no doubt prove valuable. To tell you a secret, it will make my classmates rather jealous!"

Izuku flushed slightly as he returned the pad to his bag. "O-oh. Are my notes really that sought after?"

"Of course! After your classmates did so well, almost everyone in my class has been interested in how the T-class students got as good as they did. When Midnight-sensei brought up the presence of a Support Hero student, interest skyrocketed! You're something of a legend, even!"

He was probably beat red by now, but that wasn't important. "Ah… why didn't anyone come to me, then? I know none of you like us all that much, but we never denied anyone's approach."

Iida stumbled. "Oh, uhm…"

"You mean you don't know, Midoriya?"

Izuku turned to the entrance to the training room, spotting the returning figures of Midnight and Nedzu. Midnight was out of uniform, instead dressed in casual clothing, but she still managed to cut an imposing figure.

"What do you mean, Midnight-sensei?"

The Heroine chuckled, smiled. "Midoriya, the other students don't dislike you. Your classmates scare the living daylights out of most of 'A and 'B! On top of that, they're already known as real protective of their own."

"S-scary? What?"

Midnight smiled, and Izuku balked as she began counting on her fingers. "Surviving a crazy Villain attack, navigating the school via the vents and the walls, speaking in code, showing up to the sports festival basically unannounced and trouncing all but the number one student… oh, and the one time someone tried to-" Midnight emphasised her statement with dramatic air quotes "- 'confront' you, they were instead met with the nightmarish appearance of a grumpy Eraserhead."

Ah. He hadn't considered that part of the whole sports festival plan.

they were meant to be cool and confusing, not... scary!

"I… see. Well, I'm almost done with the second years! Once I'm done with the third years I can get started with your class!"

Iida nodded. "Excellent! Thank you, Midoriya!"

Midnight grinned sharply and clapped. "Ah, I love to see you all learning to work together! Now, how about we run over to the cafeteria and grab some lunch before we start on some theoretical lessons?"

"Yes, sensei!"

SOMEWHERE WET (THE OCEAN):

*THUNK*

The bucket hit the deck with a rather satisfying thud as Tsuyu emptied the remaining clean water into the ocean beside her.

(She was a little disappointed that there hadn't been much, well, action so far, but well, peace was peace, and the sailors were still teaching her plenty. Even if she would prefer not to have to use the "Oki-Crew special", it was a useful part of her repertoire against roughly fifty percent of the population.)

"Kerrrrooooo… I think I'm done."

Tsuyu stretched as she observed the freshly mopped bow of the Oki Mariner, smiling.

 "Sheesh, Froppy! For a small fry, you work fast!"

She chuckled at the comment from Mick, one of the sailors currently on the ship, who had their own mop. "You try having to clean up after four children."

Sirius sauntered back into view, offering a cold drink which she was happy to accept. "I thought you only had two siblings?"

(Tsuyu wasn't embarrassed to admit that it didn't take her long at all to fold and show off her assorted collection of pictures of her little siblings when the offer presented itself. Thankfully, all the sailors, despite their large statures, were softies.)

"You'd think so, but Centrifugal and Constructi-Man make me wonder, Kero".

While many of the present sailors burst into laughter, Sirius smiled, joining Tsuyu in sitting on the stairs. "It's good that you have friends you trust, Froppy. They'll be great allies when you get out into the world!"

Mick chuckled from his own spot, grabbing a beverage (probably the sailor's favoured light beer, if she was to guess). "Well, whenever those two need travel by boat, the Oki Mariner is always ready to sail. Heck, maybe even that support student you were talking about-"

"Oi, Aniki, stop trying to bribe Froppy into getting you a meeting with Guidance before all the other supports! You do that and Lighthouse will be on your ass, and our asses by proxy, for weeks! You know how she gets!"

"Oh, sod off, Umihaikei!"

While the sailors began to bicker, Tsuyu tilted her head, looking to the blond man curiously. "You're a support Hero, Mick?"

The man nodded. "I suppose I'm not all that obvious about it with my size, no? Underground Support. I've got no need for fame, and Captain certainly can't do paperwork, and Shipshape wouldn't really get me through the standard licencing exams, especially since I never went to one of your fancy Hero schools."

(While most of the crew worked under the navy, earning them quirk use licences, only Sirius, Selkie and Mick had real Hero licences, mostly for the independence. Shipshape was a rather subtle quirk, but incredible in its usefulness. Needless to say, knowing where damage to the boat is down to the millimetre certainly helps keep your vessel up and running.)

"I suppose that makes sense, Kero. But if you really want to get Izu-Guidance's attention, just bait him with Quirk Analysis. You can get him to do basically anything that way."

The large man chuckled. "Blackmail material! Thanks, Froppy!"

"Oi, everyone, Captain's coming back!"

Sirius laughed softly while the rest of the crew scrambled to clean up behind themselves. "Certainly a lively bunch, huh, Froppy?"

Tsuyu smiled. "Definitely, Kero. It's certainly... familiar."

BEAST'S FOREST:

"Owwwww…."

"Is that the good kind of pain or the bad kind, dear?"

"The good kind, probably. I dunno anymore…"

Kyouka heaved silently while Mandalay chuckled, seemingly barely winded.

Evening jog her ass.

Returning to the lodge where she was staying at the moment had felt like entering heaven as Kyouka flopped onto the nearest chair, slouching as she continued to regain her breath.

"You… spotlight people… are… crazy. Aren't you supposed to be a Support Hero?"

The Cat costumed Hero (Minus the claws and makeup, considering the effort needed for that while not on patrol was… a bit much) simply shrugged. "Still includes the word Hero! A lot of us are just about as active as Action Heroes. Especially Spotlight Support Heroes."

Kyouka grumbled. "Even 'learnt how to use a sword for fun' Zu doesn't have as much stamina as you do!"

"Yeah, yeah. You have the rest of the evening off unless Pixie decides to be evil. Use it as you will, but go to sleep early, all right? Pixie will be running you ragged!"

Oh god kill her now.

Letting the sarcasm die for a moment, she smiled despite her tiredness. "Thanks, Mandalay-sensei. Say hi to Kota for me."

Kota was a little bastard, but she wasn't going to say that out loud. Oh, and, well, the poor kid was in mourning, so she couldn't hold it against him.

"Of course. Sleep well!"

As Mandalay slipped out to return to civilization, Kyouka stood up again, stretching and returning to the room she was provided. As it turns out, a Hero team like the Pussycats couldn't exactly stop doing their thing for a week, so they were all taking turns teaching her while the others worked. It was incredibly obvious that they were each using it as functional days off, but the training was incredible, and they were all fun to be around, so she wasn't complaining. She wasn't patrolling, but she was confident she was going to kick ass when she got home. (Jack-no-Jitsu, here we come!)

(She swore she wasn't going to wear the damn offered cat ears. But she was only halfway through they were already wearing her down.)

Switching to her pyjamas (She'd greet Pixie-Bob by the door and no further. Sue her, she's tired.) she flopped into her bed. By some miracle, they had service here. Apparently, Tiger and Ragdoll really liked their K-Dramas, but it meant she could at least chat to her friends.

Flicking open their chat app, she spotted a few of them online in one of the assorted rooms that had been set up.

CHAT #5

HEADBANNED: How did our parents put up with diaper changing this shit is a nightmare

Partytime.png: Hah. Poop

🅱️unk: Yo, your internship is… weird.

Knife: Oh thank hell Kyouka's here I can be saved from this mess

Partytime.png: You love us, Bugman!

Knife: If I said I didn't I'd be summarily executed so sure, yeah, Invis, sure. How's going native treating you, K?

🅱️unk: I can't feel my legs. In other words, good. Has Mr. Brave 'Stolen all of your blood' yet

Knife: I've been banned from doing any more sword pulls by Brave's Fiancé if that means anything. But I can make axes now, which is cool as hell

HEADBANNED: Thank hell Mido's asleep. He'll have a thousand-word analysis out by the time he's been awake for five minutes, you know?

Of the Opera: [IMAGE ATTATCHED: A really poorly taken photo of black cat] I pulled a cat out of a tree today. Enigma-Sensei said the best word to use was 'Scrungly'?

Partytime.png: CAT

HEADBANNED: CAT

Knife: CAT

🅱️unk: CAT

CATshou: I get why Sensei has this chat muted now. But sure, screw it. That is, in fact, a CAT.

Kyouka smiled slightly as her phone continued to light up with messages, mostly consisting of Tooru and Yousetsu badgering Reiko for more pictures of the cat. She had… interesting friends, but she wasn't complaining.

She was interrupted by the downstairs door slamming open.

"SURPRISE EXERCISE TIME! GET OUT OF BED, BEAT UP!"

Oh. Now she was complaining.

"Oh, you've gotta be kidding me!"

SHIZUOKA:

*BANG* *BANG*

"Hmmm… Nope."

"That's about what I expected, but it never hurts to check."

Hitoshi sighed, putting aside the small pistols he had been given onto the rack.

Fukukado-Sensei shrugged, packing up the guns. "Alright. Other than the expected love of the sniper rifle…" "Expected?" "Everyone underground loves the thing, duh, guns are pretty much off the table. So that means…"

Hitoshi's teacher began to wander off, muttering. Hitoshi followed, weary of getting lost in the winding halls of the Armory himself and his mentor had gone to.

"Ah-Hah! Here should be good!"

Looking to the door, labelled with a large -EXPERIMENTAL-, Hitoshi looked to Ms. Joke with a deadpan expression.

The Hero laughed. "Hey, don't look at me like that! If we can't find you a normal weapon, we'll just need to get weird! This place is where 'Zawa got his capture weapon, so don't look down on it!"

Sliding open the doors, Hitoshi witnessed a wide variety of weaponry. Sickles, Scythes, Gauntlets… was that a boombox?

"Funkman requested a weapon that could unfold from a boombox. I keep the prototype here, just in case."

Hitoshi turned around, coming face to face with what he could only guess was the rooms curator.

The man looked somewhere around one hundred, by Hitoshi's estimate, about as short as Hitoshi's knee, and was literally covered in bushy brown hair.

"Kenranzaki-San! It's been a while!"

"Ms. Joke, Slackjaw. Nedzu predicted your presence here, so I prepared accordingly. Come along now…"

The man slowly made his way through the room, whistling. While he followed, Fukukado-Sensei leaned down. "He might look silly, but he's the best weapon designer in the country. He traded Nedzu Aizawa's capture weapon to pay for the later admission of his granddaughter."

"Huh."

While he followed, the old man began to talk. "I've made plenty of unorthodox weaponry for people with non-combative quirks before. mental quirks are especially interesting, I think, since it turns weapons into a means to stall for time... but you are different."

Eventually, the trio arrived at a small room, densely packed with a variety of heavy weapons. The old man smiled, barely visible from under his hair. "From what I've been told of you, Slackjaw, you have a lot to prove, no?"

Hitoshi nodded, mostly distracted by looking at the wide range of weapons (was that a rubber chicken?). No point in hiding it. "It's a bit of a lofty goal for someone underground… but I want to cause shock and awe."

At that, the old man grinned. "It's good to see that the youth still have spirit. I think…"

The man looked into the cupboard with purpose, eventually pulling out a very specific weapon.

"That this should serve you well."

Hitoshi couldn't help but smile sharply as his teacher let out a low whistle.

"I think so."

OSAKA:

"Suplexes? Not all that bad for a starting move. Being invisible certainly makes it harder to counter."

"I thought so… but I wanted to branch out. During the U.S.J… a lot of people there were pretty much grab proof."

Rumi (as she had insisted on being called within her own home) nodded, taking another bite of her carrot. "That's the thing with melee fighters. You gotta be able to fight in eight different ways, cus someone will be able to counter seven. I teach you some more kicks tomorrow?"

Tooru smirked, prepared to get stronger "Hell yeah! I'm gonna kick Sensei's ass the next time he makes us spar him! Literally!"

"Hah, if you say so! The one time I worked with Eraserhead he used that weapon of his to fling someone through a wall. Politely? Not gonna mess. Although... without the thing, I could take him."

"He certainly showed his stuff against those guys who attacked us!"

Rumi chuckled, then. As it turned out, outside of combat, the Rabbit Hero mellowed out considerably. The enthusiasm was there, sure, and Tooru could tell she was always at least a little wired, but she had remarkable self-control.

Finishing crunching on her carrot, Rumi looked to her, smile turning to something neutral. "It's good that you kids have proper guidance when it comes to things like that, at least."

Tooru raised an eyebrow, although it wouldn't be seen by her mentor. "What do you mean?"

Rumi snorted, smiling softly. "When I was a year or two younger than you are, there was this bigass Villain attack by where I lived. My family was alright, sure… but that shit was traumatic, you know? I kind of just started throwing myself into some pretty stupid positions after that."

"The Tiger Bunny stuff?"

At that, her teacher went beet red. "Hey, how'd you know about that?"

"Hey, I'm gonna look up my mentor's backstory before just blindly accepting! Surprise Surprise, Midori knows all."

The Rabbit Hero shook her head. "A-anyways, my point is, it's good that you've got a support system. Keep an eye on those classmates of yours, alright? From the looks of it, the world's got another thing coming."

Tooru smiled. "Of course, Teach! Does that mean you're going to retire soon?"

"Of course not, you brat…"

MUSUTAFU (AGAIN) (AGAIN):

Izuku shouldn't have been all that surprised when he found that Nedzu did, in fact, live in U.A. Nonetheless, crawling into what was functionally a really structurally stable molehill was certainly a novel experience.

(A random hill next to the pathway between Ground Gamma and Ground Omega certainly was A place to build a house, but it was hidden well enough that very few had found it.)

Thankfully, the place had a guest room designed to fit the needs of someone human sized.

("Shouta-kun used to stay here quite frequently towards the end of his third year. I was motivated to make some renovations, you could say!")

Placing himself on a seat opposite Nedzu in the place's small kitchenette, Izuku politely helped himself to a few of the assorted nuts in the small bowl while his teacher sorted through his selection of various games.

Eventually, he extracted an old trading card game, one the pair had played often enough that Izuku had assembled a few sets of his own to play. Nedzu, of course, fetched the exact one Izuku wanted to use, because of course he did.

Placing his own deck upon the table, the game started without preamble as Nedzu looked to him with a smile. "You have had a rather productive day today, Midoriya-kun! May I see the notes you made on Iida-kun's quirk?"

Passing his notes for the day, Izuku began to assemble his basic strategy, weary of Nedzu's fondness for countering his favourites. "It's not all that organised, yet. I wanted to ask… would it be rude to ask if Engine follows Garaki's theory of Mutant damage enhancement?"

Nedzu grinned as he read the notes, all while continuing to play. It was one part leisure and one part training Izuku's multitasking skills, but he was happy to say he was slowly getting better.

"Perhaps… but the Iida's do often remove their mufflers in order to allow them to grow back stronger at around age sixteen, so you would be correct. You've gotten better at structural note taking! This doesn't need much refining to be turned into an official document!"

Izuku smiled, doing his best not to flinch at Nedzu's rapidly growing pile of active cards, appearing and vanishing rapidly. "I wanted to be prepared for Friday… I figured it would be a part of the licencing exam."

Nedzu nodded, just barely countering Izuku's attack with fodder, before continuing on like he wasn't on the brink of death. "Unfortunately, I cannot tell you the specifics, but I'm fairly confident that you'll succeed!"

Izuku sat back for a moment, considering his next move. "My exam is in Hosu, yes? Are we sure it's a good idea to bring Iida with?"

"I do think so. Nemuri-chan believes that it will be best for his development to experience a little bit of exposure therapy. Plus, a look into the world of Support Heroics should also be an interesting lesson for him!"

Izuku nodded. "Right. I suppose all we can do is prepare…"

"Correct! Speaking of prepared… I believe that is game over."

Izuku sighed as Nedzu wiped his board with a well-timed super powered move. "How do you always manage to draw that?"

"Luck and skill, my friend, luck and skill! Now, how about another game while we prepare your schedule for tomorrow?"

Izuku sighed, but he nonetheless began to shuffle his deck, preparing to go again.

After all, if Izuku was good at anything, it was getting back up again.

Chapter 20: The Test

FRIDAY

YAMANASHI:

The quiet thrum of the microwave filled the elsewise empty space as Sen scrolled on his phone, seeing the updates from his classmates.

God, that is a really loud microwave…

*BEEP*

Oh, right, everything's loud right now. Ow.

The old man pulled his Takoyaki out of the microwave, placing himself on the other end of the table before sliding Sen a bottle of painkillers.

Torino sighed. "I overdid it, I'll admit. I'm used to training people hardier than you."

"Hey!"

Silence filled the room for a moment before Sen realised who Torino was probably talking about.

"Alright. Fair, actually."

Torino snorted, beginning to eat his own food as Sen started eating his cereal. "For real, though, kid, you shouldn't feel too bad about feeling like shit. You're definitely improving."

Sen nodded, swallowing a few of the provided pills along with his food. "You're not so bad yourself, old man."

"Feh, don't compliment and mock me at the same time, brat, I'm only in my Eighties."

"Bloody Hell, I'm surprised you haven't turned into dust yet."

The man shrugged. "I probably should have, but I've always been hardy. I ain't going down until a certain someone's guaranteed to have kicked it."

"And that someone is…?"

Torino was silent briefly, and Sen got the feeling this wasn't a topic to touch. Eventually, the man shrugged. "Some old demon. Don't worry about it."

Sen shrugged. Not his place, he supposed.

The meal continued there, but it was a pleasant kind of silence, filling the room with ambiance rather than dread.

Finishing up his Takoyaki, Gran Torino looked up. "Today's going to be mostly a rest day to get your body back in working order, but we'll be going out this evening to put your skills to the test. Any preferences?"

Sen thought back for a moment to the text from Hitoshi he had seen this morning. Maybe…

"I've got a buddy I want to visit, so… how about..."

~---HOSU: THE TEST---~

HOSU (MID AFTERNOON):

If there was one thing Izuku had come to appreciate about Support Heroes, it was that they knew how to be subtle.

"Are you sure this is the right building, Midoriya-kun?"

Izuku nodded, looking up at what for all purposes was a standard office building. "I doubt Nedzu-Sensei would send us to the wrong place."

Thankfully, taking the train (A private cab. It felt off being in one after being on the public ones for so long, but that was a luxury he would perhaps need to get used to as a Hero.) over had been stress free. Nedzu had needed to go on ahead, but Iida had filled the empty space with conversations about Ingenium, so it wasn't all that bad.

(There was nothing making the boy wear his Hero outfit, but he had insisted on 'representing U.A'. Izuku felt there was another reason, but he didn't comment on it.)

Iida was quiet for a moment, fiddling with his phone and looking around the street. "I suppose…"

"There's no point in waiting around the front entrance, kids! If you're going to be Heroes, you need to learn to take initiative!"

Snapping their heads up, Izuku and Iida both saw a body emerging from the wall in front of them, stopping at the waist. The body was assembled out of a thick grey slurry only a little different from the concrete it had emerged from, with a small smile and eyes the only visible organs.

While Iida stumbled back, Izuku moved forward. "You're the Support Hero Cran Gravello! How fast can you travel through cement? What does the mixture of the cement have on your ease of movement! What happens when you get cut in half…"

Izuku's rambling was interrupted a hearty laugh. "No wonder Ken complimented you, kid. I can answer some questions for you later, but for now, you gotta get into the building, alright? I'm just security, and we're trying to keep it low key, you know?"

"Ah! Right!"

The two were quick to slip into the building while the Hero waved them in with a smile, disappearing into the wall again like a living security camera.

The interior of the building was, like the outside, a fairly bland office space. A few people, ranging from Heroes he vaguely recognised to HPSC members, were standing in the entrance room, all attracted towards a larger gate. Izuku wondered what the place was used for during the rest of the year.

"I suppose it is likely that the building is used by various businesses, Hero related or not. As far as I know, the higher floors are used for meetings."

Izuku blushed, realising he had been mumbling. "Oh… I suppose so."

Moving in, Izuku noticed that the path split, with one door labelled "EXAM TAKERS" And another "GUESTS".

Iida smiled, looking to him. "It appears this is where we must part. Good luck, Midoriya-kun!"

"Thanks, Iida! Hopefully this isn't too boring…"

Iida chuckled before he left, on his way to the guest area. Thankfully for Izuku's anxiety, the event wasn't all that publicised, as Izuku only saw a few people present in the guest area, mostly older Heroes and family members.

Walking over to his own entrance, he was greeted by a rather friendly looking HPSC woman, who smiled as she inspected his card.

"Woah, kid! Usually, the youngest people taking this exam are third years… Ah, that mentor would explain it. Good luck, kid! I'm rooting for you!"

Izuku smiled and nodded, internally celebrating the support from someone he didn't know. Was that what Heroes felt like all the time? It was great!

He nodded to himself, pumping a fist. He could do this!

(Midoriya Izuku was going to be a Hero.)

Izuku could totally not do this.

Gah! People! His weakness!

His strategy of hiding in the corner hoping not to be noticed didn't work when there was only five people in the room! Two of them were HEROES!

At least speaking at the sports festival had enough layers of anonymity that most people didn't know it was him!

"Feeling somewhat out of your depth, my friend?"

Izuku recoiled slightly as one of the other people taking the exam walked up to him. Thankfully for him, it was the Hero student rather than any of the adults, who were huddled up on the other side of the room, seemingly to be polite.

"O-oh, yeah, kind of… I'm not the best at meeting people… sorry."

The boy chuckled heartily, seemingly unbothered. They had a rather blank face, calm and serene, along with a long blond ponytail. Notably, he towered over Izuku, only a little shorter than Shouji.

It helped that the boy seemed to capitalize on his height with his clothing. Were those platform shoes? Really?

"I understand perfectly. I suppose that is why people like you and I are applying for this path of Heroics, is it not?"

The boy struck out a hand, seemingly mindful of Izuku's space, which he was grateful for. "My name is Nousou Chisato. I am a third year at Seijin high school. It is a pleasure to be taking this exam alongside you."

(Seijin? Seijin… ah, the one with the ninjas!)

"Ah, I'm M-Midoriya Izuku! I'm a U.A first year."

From the Adult corner, someone let out a low whistle. "Woah, kid! Going quick, are 'ya? U.A does things fast."

Turning to look, Izuku witnessed one of the two present police officers smacking the other over the head lightly. "Oh, leave the kid alone. We're in this together."

Izuku took the time to pop his head into the conversation, taking a deep breath and doing his best to still his nerves. "Um… speaking of… I couldn't help but notice there's not very many people here?"

One of the two Heroes, a rather calm Heteromorph with long grey arms, dressed in a bulky coat that was a similar colour to his skin (That was Reacher! Oh, Izuku had so many questions about his Hero career!), nodded. "Of the five locations in the country, each one never usually tops more than ten attendants. The country is lucky to distribute more than a hundred provisional licences a year, and even less full-time licences. I myself am here to get the rights to take further participation in investigations as I near retirement, but I'm still spotlight, so I'm mostly on the field."

The police officer who had spoken first rubbed her head, shrugging. "If you want to do big things as someone on the force, you get one. There's a big secretive organised crime case that's super secretive, so our boss wants us to get provisional licenses so we can get the rights to work on it with him. Thank hell It doesn't make us wear spandex."

That made sense, Izuku supposed… "The licence doesn't put you on the rankings or anything, and a lot of Heroes don't do work outside of patrols, leaving it to secretaries and the police, so a lot of them never see the need for licences… and since the licence is only provisional, even non-Heroes could get it?

The other present Hero, a woman dressed in a green and white jumpsuit, alongside a red scarf, nodded. "On the dot, kid. It just makes all of us who do grab the things all the cooler, huh?"

Nousou nodded, moving to his bag to extract the necessary stationary for the first part of the test, the only part they were able to (reasonably) prepare for, the written portion. "I suppose that much is true. Let us all do our best, and support each other once we all achieve victory, no?"

Izuku nodded, extracting his own stationary from his bag before placing it aside, looking to the almost finished clock. He was going to make Nedzu-Sensei, Yagi-San, and Mom proud!

(He couldn't just not be a Hero. Nothing else ever felt right.)

The written test had been about as difficult as Izuku had expected. Which was to say incredibly stressful, but doable. Nedzu-sensei wouldn't have had him take a test that he couldn't pass, after all.

The sections on math and the sciences had been gracefully brief, and they didn't go much higher than things Izuku would have learnt in second year high school if he wasn't a little ahead on those matters. After that came a longer section on various topics related to Hero work.

(Judging by the contents, the tests had to be personalised. The two police officers definitely didn't need to know about things already related to police, after all, and Izuku wouldn't be surprised if Nedzu-Sensei had been responsible for getting whoever wrote the test to slip in a long question about the transport logistics of Quirk Supressing cuffs after they had had a long conversation on the topic not a few months prior.)

He struggled with the section on public relations, sure, but he could flex maybe a little self-confidence for the quirk analysis section, sue him.

Nonetheless, he was able to come out of the test relatively calm, and he was able to dispel any remaining anxiety during the relaxing motions of collecting the gear for his Hero costume. (The trench coat was subtle enough that he could wear it out and about, but he couldn't exactly carry his weapons around, sadly.)

Strap, Strap, buckle, buckle, equip, hide… a reminder of what he had accomplished in the last year.

He had help, sure, but he felt good about himself for perhaps the first time in a while.

He took one last deep breath, preparing to exit the changing room.

Guidance was going to get his licence.

(Izuku hadn't really been all too sure what being a Hero meant, for a while. Initially, he had thought of it as being like All Might, but…)

Slowly walking through the halls, Izuku looked to the boy who would be interviewed after him.

(Thankfully for his sanity, the group of six was divided into three sets of two for the interview section, with them last. The two police officers had smiled as they went first, cheering the rest on, while the two Heroes had wished them luck before going to equip their own costumes. One had even snuck a card with their Hero network I.D into one of Izuku's pockets! "For later! We can collab!")

Nousou had politely waited for him outside, considering he had far less gear than Izuku did. Unsurprisingly, considering the boy's Hero school of choice, his outfit resembled that of a ninja, although it had been personalised, replacing the traditional hood with a Samurai Helmet and pauldrons. While most Seijin students were quick to rebrand once getting out of the school, you could often tell when someone was trained there if only from the smaller influences.

The boy turned to him, seemingly observing his own outfit. "For reference, Midoriya-San, may I know your Hero name? In a professional context like this, it is possible our conduct may affect our results."

Izuku nodded. "Right! I'm The Hero's Hero, Guidance. Um, and you?"

Nousou pondered for a moment, before smiling lightly. "A fitting name for the path of Heroics you are seeking out. As for me, I am The Vision Hero, Delphi."

Izuku's eyes widened. "Delphi… like the oracle? Does it tie to your quirk?"

"Yes. I am graced with a gift… my quirk, Prophecy. Physical contact with a person allows me to receive a vision of their future in the form of words. I may choose how far out the guidance of the words reaches, but anywhere longer than a day and the words become so vague that little can be gained from attempting to interpret them. Nonetheless, even an hour of foresight allows for an opportunity to prepare and shift that prophecy to a positive light, which is why I'm aiming for a future in Support Heroics, like yourself."

Fascinating. Oh, man, if only the gap between the changing rooms and the test area was longer! He would have loved the get us much info out of that quirk as he could! Prediction quirks were fascinating and rare and- now wasn't the time!

"Oh, u-uhm, that quirk is really cool, Delphi! I'm sure you'll be an excellent support Hero with it!"

The Hero in training smiled. "Thank you, Guidance. May I ask what your own quirk is?"

Ah.

"I… don't have one."

Delphi came to a stop in front of the door to the exam room, eyes widening briefly, before his face returned to a more neutral one. "I see. You will have the whole world against you, then, I suppose. But…"

They shifted their position to face Izuku, holding onto the hilt of their sword in a way that made Izuku exceptionally jealous (Maybe he should move his sword out from its slot in his coat…), smiling.

"I have learnt after so long having a quirk like mine that one saying holds true… fortune favours the bold, no?"

(Internally, Izuku stewed. If only the world at large was kinder, to reveal those who offered him support earlier, rather than forcing him to hide away for so long… but…)

Izuku smiled, happy to know that even a few supported him. "Right!"

Izuku opened the door, preparing to hopefully impress the judges enough to score his licence.

(The realisation had been slow, but it had been freeing. That to be a Hero didn't mean the job or the title or the fame. Maybe, it was waking up to the smiling face of the mother he was making proud. Helping the neighbour carry his things. Help ensure lives were saved, even if it was out of sight, unappreciated except by the few in the know.)

Nedzu was never nervous. Sure, he had emotions that most would consider similar. Dread, the occasional drop of fear, uncertainty… but to be nervous was to be apprehensive.

Rather, Nedzu felt excited.

Annoyingly, he couldn't oversee Midoriya-kun's interview himself due to silly things like 'bias', but such was life. He had overseen the two Heroes (Both passed. Nedzu wasn't complaining, any extra Support Heroes in the coming days would be invaluable) and the police officers (It had been a close thing, as usual, but they got through. Tsukauchi had wanted more non-Pro Heroes on the League Case, he was thankfully going to get them.) but he could only sit back and watch as his student walk into the chamber, out of sight.

To Nedzu's left, Iida-kun nervously fiddled, watching the room intently. Nedzu had taken the waiting period to educate the boy on the various things Midoriya-kun's licence was for, and it thankfully left the boy rather fascinated.

Finally, the time arrived, and Midoriya stepped in while the other boy waited outside.

(Oh, if only he had snapped up the boy with the prophetic quirk before the coots-Achem, fellow teachers- at Seijin did. Maybe an exchange program? Ah, now wasn't the time.)

Walking into the room, Midoriya nervously sat himself down in the offered chair in front of the judges, but not before prodding the chair with a staff, finding nothing dangerous. Good. Paranoia would earn him a few points from some of the present judges.

Two HPSC representatives, a police detective, a retired pro, an active one, and two Support Heroes. To get his licence, Midoriya would need the approval of four of them. A little over fifty seven percent, or, in other words, a majority.

Nodding, one of the HPSC representatives, as standard as you could get (Quite literally, a quirk simply called 'Generic' made his appearance and voice… unremarkable), pulled out a file, beginning a standard spiel. "Midoriya Izuku. Age fifteen. Currently a student at U.A High school. Quirk… Not Applicable."

That got a scowl from the other HPSC representative. Thankfully, Midoriya did not falter.

Shrugging, the man continued. "You achieved an above average score of eighty-five percent on the theoretical examination, which grants you eligibility for a Provisional Support Heroics Licence upon a majority vote by the present judges. When applying for this licence, you noted personal Heroics and agency support as your primary uses of the licence and will thus be questioned on these topics. Is this all correct?"

A nod. "Yes, sir."

"Very well. Let us begin."

"You are faced with a situation in which two people are trapped within a burning building. One is old, and one is a child. Who do you save?"

"Well… the code of ethics inscribed within the Heroic accords of XXXX state that when presented with a choice between saving two individuals, you prioritize saving both until the option to do so is lost. The child is more at risk of suffering long term risk of lung damage, so they should be pulled out first, being placed onto your back. After that, you can move to secure the older individual. Should timing be short… prioritize the saving of a civilian over yourself, if you must."

Izuku had been told quite a few times in the therapy sessions he had had with Hound Dog that he had a bit of a saviour complex as a result of idolizing Heroes above all else… but he couldn't exactly lie here with the risk of someone present having some degree of Polygraphic abilities.

Izuku gulped as he got a small look of approval from the active Hero. Looks like he was on the right track, at least.

"Midoriya-"

"Oh, and the uses of Air wall outside of defence are impeccable! Holding up collapsed structures, carrying heavy objects across dangerous areas… what happens if you point your hands straight down? Can you-

"Midoriya-San."

Izuku was snapped out of his rambling by the grunt of the HPSC representative. "Oh. Sorry, I tend to ramble a little about quirks…"

He quickly pulled one of his notebooks out of his coat. "I have more analysis in here, if that helps! It's a little more structured than me talking out loud!"

"That… won't be necessary, Midoriya-san." The representative sighed, but he didn't seem disapproving, per say. Meanwhile, one of the present pro Heroes seemed to be holding back laughter, fiddling with faint wisps of energy around their hand, forming a… circle.

Oh dear. He had been ranting about someone's quirk to their face again, hadn't he?

Well, he seemed happy, at least!

Izuku was starting to get the feeling that these questions were moreso to see if he could handle long meetings, but they were really starting to wear him down. They hadn't asked him any more analysis questions after the first one, which hopefully was a vote of confidence on that front, but judging by the fact that rate the judges writing notes was beginning to slow to a crawl, he was nearing the end.

The police detective (an old man with curly hair, almost hiding the long basset hound ears hidden within, if not for the flat skin where ears were supposed to be. The matching tail wagged when Izuku made up two lies, so he hadn't bothered trying again.) leaned forward, clearing his throat. He had played at bumbling and inattentive the whole time, but Izuku could tell he was the biggest swing voter, and the one to keep an eye on.

"So, kid, I don't know about my cohorts here, but there just, uh, one more thing from me. That coat of yours… what's in it?"

"O-oh. Uhm… could you be a bit more specific?"

(Out of sight and hearing range, Nedzu chuckled (Sadly, he couldn't cackle. He didn't want to unnerve Iida), remembering sending Kenranzaki Creations the commission for his student's list of equipment. That had been a fun string of emails!)

The detective shrugged. "Sure thing. Weapons?"

Izuku nodded, pulling open a side and reaching in. "Well…"

*Thunk* "My knives..." *Thunk* "Flashbangs…" *Thunk* "The Stake..." *Thunk* "The Steak…"

Izuku's voice descended into mumbles as he pulled out more items. Annoyingly, he ran out of space on the table before he could get out everything.

Finally, Izuku unfolded his Porta-Sword, holding it in his hand. "There's a few more things, and I've got my speciality items in their cases back home, but they were too heavy to bring with…"

He was met with a look of bewilderment from the judges. Which was… good? Hopefully?

Dang it, if only Mom and Yagi-San let him have the gun he wanted…

Eventually, the questions came to an end, leaving Izuku to nervously fiddle while Delphi took the exam himself. A part of him wanted to watch and cheer his Senpai on, but he felt too anxious to focus on much. Iida, to his credit, was supportive, sitting by him and preventing him from ripping himself apart with stress.

Finally, the time came, and Izuku was called into the room, Iida on his heels.

Coming into the room, he found the judges, Delphi, and Nedzu waiting. Nedzu's smile was the same as always, and the judges faces all varied.

The HPSC representative stepped forward, face neutral and voice plain.

"Nousou Chisato. Following your questioning, a vote was made to decide whether or not you would be considered eligible to gain a Support Hero Licence. I am happy to say that you received seven votes of approval. It will be a pleasure to work with you in future, Delphi."

Cheers erupted across the room, and the boy smiled exuberantly, taking the offered licence with a smile, sliding it into his pocket.

(The thing was pretty much a novelty, of course. Everything was digital.)

Delphi turned to Midoriya, smiling, before offering a hand. Izuku took it, confused. Immediately, the older boy's eyes began to glow.

A faint, indecipherable whisper emanated from him, and his face turned into one of confusion, before he smiled.

"The path for your future unshackled, those of the night shall feel unknowing dread over your victory."

Izuku's eyes widened, seeing the boy's quirk in action. Did that mean…

The representative cleared his throat. Izuku knew his vote was likely closer than the other, considering his status. "Midoriya Izuku. Upon convention, your licence was considered as well. After considerable debate, your…"

*KKKKRAAAAKOOOOM*

The man's speech was interrupted as loud, screeching noise erupted through the building, and instantly the many present Heroes snapped to attention, weary. Izuku braced, grabbing for one of his knives.

Iida shifted his position, face nervous. "What's going on!?"

As the room's lights flickered, one of present Heroes, the Fly, reached for their radio. "Gravello! What's going on out there!?"

The voice heard was shaking and windswept, the Hero likely having rushed to the roof for a good viewpoint.

"Shit. There was a giant explosion a few blocks away! There's a bunch of people going for the chance to loot, and- Who the hell- GAH!"

The radio fizzed into static, the last noise heard being that of a sickening crunch. The present Heroes were silent for a moment, before many quickly began to scramble, bracing for action.

(To reiterate, well…)

Izuku's eyes snapped to his teacher, an almost desperate feeling growing in his gut. Nedzu, meanwhile, simply reached down into his suitcase, extracting a sleek silver revolver, custom tailored to Nedzu's hands. The High Specs Hero wasn't smiling.

"All Present Heroes and Heroes in training, you are hereby given permission to act in the defence of others. Move out and find out what's going on!"

A moment passed, and Izuku was off and running.

(Midoriya Izuku is going to be a Hero.)

Chapter 21: The first step towards the future

Hosu city, Tokyo.

The City of Steel and Hope, the economic heart of post-Quirk Japan. One of the Country's youngest supercities at less than one hundred years old, it was famous for its Hero centric culture, quirk assisted construction, and diverse population.

It was one of the areas in Japan most famous for its anti-discrimination culture, since kindness was all but built in when those people most treated with cruelty were the ones that built your houses. Many flocked to Hosu, hoping for safe treatment, from heteromorphs to the weak quired, to even those rare few elderly with no quirk at all.

Sure, they were never truly safe, but it was better than most places, especially with the city's present Heroes. Heroes like Ingenium, Wolf-claw, and Manual regularly patrolled, and many other Heroes were well liked.

Right now, however…

"Get back!"

*CRASH*

The city was in flames.

~---HOSU: FIRST STEP TOWARDS THE FUTURE---~

Nedzu calmly aimed his revolver, taking a steady breath. Sure, it didn't pump nearly as much oxygen into him as an equivalent human breath, but it did the job.

*Bang*

The rioter fell to the ground with a scream. A shot to the knee like that wouldn't cause any permanent damage, but it would hurt like hell. Nedzu scampered over to the man, knocking him out with a chop to the head. They had taken the chaos surrounding them as an opportunity to go straight for the tech store. Based on his clothes… upper middle class, no risk of economic instability.

Pitiful.

"Woah…"

He turned to Manual, who was quick to dash forward and tie the man up, marking him for arrest. "What is the status of the situation, Manual-san?"

(Nedzu, for the first time in a while, scorned his squeaky voice. Oh well, he'd make do with actions to project his intentions.)

The Hero looked bewildered for a moment, likely shocked that Nedzu remembered his name, before he calmed himself, face becoming serious as he held a hand to his ear radio.

Nedzu could just about make out the chitter of the radio, but it wasn't worth the mental energy of processing. Instead, he extracted his phone, sending an update to his staff. They would need to perform the necessary steps to secure U.A in the event that this attack was not limited to Hosu.

Shouta was at least quick to perform a checkup. All clear responses, bar Midoriya, Kaibara, Shinsou, Shouji and Kodai. The last two made sense, since they were busy, but the former…

"An estimated one hundred or so people took the large explosion as a chance to act and begin rioting, likely set off by operatives in crowds who knew the attack was coming, identified by cloaks and black masks. The explosion site contained three Villains initially, although one was able to fly away. The present Heroes are trying to detain them… but they're freakishly strong."

"Descriptors?"

Manual parroted the question into his radio, nodding. "All Heteromorphs. Humanoid, various sizes. Only vocalisations are groans and screams... exposed brains?"

At that, Nedzu scowled. "So, it was not The Noumu at my school. Rather A. Manual-San, may I borrow that radio for a moment?"

The Hero complied, unclipping his radio and passing it to him. Nedzu was quick to accept it, quickly setting it to broadcast to every nearby Hero channel.

He cleared his throat. "Achem. This is Pro Hero Mr. Principal."

"Oh, thank god!" "The U.A one? The scary ass one? Aw yeah!" "Finally! What's going on, Sir?"

"This attack appears to have been orchestrated by The League of Villains, whose only previously known operation was their failed attack on U.A Academy. Look for those in cloaks and black masks, as they are likely the perpetrators in disguise. Notably, if at all possible, use close combat to prevent them from evacuating via their access to a Teleportation-class quirk."

"You got it, Sir!" "Understood. I've got eyes in the sky!" "Move out, folks!"

"Lastly, beware of creatures tentatively classified as Noumu. They possess multiple quirks and are at present considered by me and other investigators to be Vivus-cadaver, and thus The Necropsy Laws apply. If they are alive at all, it is existence of pain. Considering their regeneration abilities, the current strategy is to kill with great prejudice. Preferably Fire or crushing. If not available… run."

"Shit. This is like with Windblade…" "For once I wish Endeavour was around." "Dear god…"

"Good luck. Over and out."

Nedzu turned off the radio, returning it to Manual, who nodded sternly. "What now, Sir?"

"Would you mind accompanying me for a period, Manual-san? Four of my wards are unaccounted for in this chaos, and I do not wish for them to come to harm."

Manual nodded, firmly securing the present man, and ensuring the store they were in was secured until the police force could reclaim control of the area. "Of course, Sir. I would hate to see any teenagers hurt."

Nedzu grinned, loading a bullet into his revolver to replace the spent one.

The small part of his brain that wasn't dedicated to analysing the situation then came to a rather interesting realisation. Typically, when acting on offence, Nedzu's Instincts matched those of a predator. This time though…

The closest match was to that of a Parent protecting a Cub.

And who was he to deny those instincts?

"Good. Let us get to hunting, shall we?"

Two figures, cloaks billowing in the hot wind, stood on the verge of an alleyway, observing the chaos.

The short one spoke up first. "What's your estimate on the casualties for this?"

The other figure was much larger, holding a sizeable club. "Ironically enough, pretty low. Mostly Heroes, rioters who decide to be cruel, and people who were close to the portal that dropped the bomb and the… things. The structural damage on the other hand…"

"Mmh…"

The short one stretched. "This area's quiet now. Let's- "

*CLANK*

His words were interrupted as his companion quickly raised their weapon, blocking an attack from above.

"Finally! I thought Heroes would never arrive!"

Hitoshi leapt off of the club, landing with a roll a small distance away, quickly rising to his feet. He clicked his two new Batons together, forming a short staff. "Damn. And here I thought I'd be able to sneak attack you."

(Damnit. Of all the days for an attack. He just wanted to surprise Boss with Sen, but noooo….)

The tall figure discarded their cloak. They were built like a brick shithouse, but their dark clothing and Black Mask obscured any identifying features.

"We're a little harder to take down then that, brat."

(Bingo.)

They turned to their companion. "You got an identity for this kid?"

The shorter one sighed. "It's a U.A Brat. Don't know what his quirk is. Oh, and Ms. Joke, trying her own sneak attack."

Hitoshi sighed as he looked up to a balcony, seeing his mentor smirking. "Eh, it was worth a try."

The Hero jumped down, her boots absorbing the landing. She made sure to extenuate the landing with a flourishing bow.

She smiled, looking to the Villains. "Now, would you mind telling us why you're here before we beat you up? It makes paperwork easier."

They shrugged, coughing to suppress Ms. Joke's attempt to trigger her quirk. Their voice was nasally, indicating that the height was far more a product of age than genetics, which was only a little concerning. "I'm afraid you'll find the two of us aren't here for much of a reason at all."

Ms Joke's smile did not falter. "So, you two are on distraction duty? We're honored."

The shorter Villain slouched, groaning. "Oh, I wishyou two were on the kill list. Unfortunately… Now!"

The large Villain jumped forward, swinging their club, forcing the two of them back.

They scoffed, looking to them. "We'll just have to get you out of commission and be on our way!"

Hitoshi sighed, fiddling with his staff, extracting an extension from his new and improved toolbelt.

Snapping to the top, the jet-black staff came to life, blue etchings glowing, sparks surging through the end.

(Support Engineers had a flair for the dramatics, because of course they did.)

Ms. Joke braced alongside them. Annoyingly, Outburst would keep them quiet. He just needed to get a quip from the Short one, and…

"Fine. Let's just get this over with!"

With no other choice, Hitoshi leapt into the fray.

"Where are we going, Midoriya!?"

Izuku kept running, barely giving his companion notice, milling over the facts in his head as they dashed through the many alleyways the city held.

(As a post quirk era city, Hosu was custom built for manoeuvrability. Even the smallest places were wide. It was a boon and, at present, a problem.)

"We're on the field, Engentive! Keep your eyes open!"

Izuku noticed Iida's eyes widening through his helmet (A vulnerability. It would need to be fixed, later), before he schooled himself. "Right, Guidance! But… we seem to be going away from the epicentre of the chaos!"

"You heard Mr. Principal's broadcast! Trust me, there's nothing you or I could do against a Noumu, let alone multiple!"

Izuku was an impulsive fool, sure, but he wasn't going to run towards the giant horror monsters. One was enough, thanks.

Iida seemed to get the message. "Then where are we going!?"

Izuku slid to a stop, turning to face his companion. "Engentive. Can you put your emotions on hold to do what needs to be done?"

"Wh-what? Why?"

"Can you!?"

Iida took a step back, briefly stunned. "I- I'd like to believe so."

"Why would the League of Villains choose to attack a random street of Hosu City of all places?"

Iida considered his prompt. A moment later, his eyes bulged again, and he faltered. "A distraction… you mean him!?"

Izuku nodded, pulling one of his throwing knives out of his coat as he continued running. "Harden your heart, Engentive!"

It doesn't take much effort to create a mental map of roughly where, in a place like Hosu, a Villain would act if they wished to kill a Hero. With Heroes having a fondness for the spotlight, said Villain would probably choose to act around the evening, when the darkness had already begun appearing, but the underground Heroes wouldn't have. After that, find the most secluded place where you can drag your target to…

"GRAH!"

There.

Izuku slid around the corner, throwing his weapon with as much force as he could muster without causing it to lose accuracy.

*SWING*

…

*KLANG*

Izuku sprinted into the alley, finding a Hero (Native. Tracker. Not that useful with a hole in his side.) lying to the side, slowly bleeding out.

And a step away, forced back by the sudden attack…

"Children… who are you to interrupt my quarry?"

The Hero Killer stood, eyes seeming to glow a deep red.

"Hababadegawaba."

"Wow, kid. Such insightful commentary."

Yousetsu returned the bottle to the stupid (Really cute, but like, still) baby's mouth, looking up to his mentor, who shrugged.

"Hey, it's better than crying."

"Fair enough."

Yousetsu's internship so far had been… remarkably fulfilling.

He had gotten some damn good quirk advice from Takagi-sensei, as Rock Lock had insisted on being called when not in costume, and he had learnt way more about agency logistics then he had every expected to learn, but more weirdly… he had gotten really good at the whole holding a baby thing.

Takagi-sensei had been really insistent on 'getting normal ass life skills between those ears.' He had learnt how to cook at least three meals (Takagi-san, being on leave from her job as a dispatcher, had apparently picked up the hobby to a rather wild degree), had learnt how to properly fold up his Hero costume into its cases (Hah, Take that, Tailman! Now they were Both second place to Zu in terms of keeping their costume in order!), and he would never look at paperwork the same way again… but the baby was still the weird bit.

Sure, he had gotten to hold the Mini-Asui's when he was younger, but that had always made him anxious. Now, though? Professional tier baby holder.

Tsu was gonna be so proud of him! Hell yeah!

Takagi-Sensei chuckled as his son finished his bottle, taking a hold of him again. Smiling. "Good job. Now, let's go drop this off so we can- "

"Ken? Could you come into the living room?"

The pair entered the living room, confused. Takagi-san simply pointed to the television, face nervous.

On the screen, Yousetsu found the news playing over what looked to be a rather nasty Villain attack.

'HOSU IN FLAMES!'

Those were… those looked like the guy from the U.S.J.

The one that had almost killed Aizawa-Sensei.

"Shit… that's where Sen is…"

Yousetsu must have spaced out, because in what felt like a moment, his mentor tapped him on the shoulder, offering him his Costume Case, the other that contained his equipment in his other hand.

"What are we doing, Sensei?"

The man scowled, looking to the still playing news broadcast. "Hosu's a little out of our range. We'll be going on patrol in case there's any follow up crime here. Come on."

(It was either that or have a panic attack, so…)

"R-Right!"

Yousetsu grabbed his gear, heading straight for his room.

He could only do what he could and pray desperately that his friends were alright.

Tenya could only watch as he stood behind Midoriya, staring down the source of what felt like every problem he had.

Stain.

The one who had brought his brother's Hero career to a standstill in an instant.

He-

[

"Do you want to kill him, Tenya-kun?"

Tenya's eyes snapped up to Kayama-sensei, who had put down her fork to look him straight in the eyes.

His teacher shrugged. "The Hero Killer. Do you want to kill him?"

"I…"

"I do."

Tenya remained silent, looking at his teacher with wide eyes. Kayama-sensei simply shrugged, smiling sadly.

"I'd love to find him, knock him out. Tear off his fingers and gouge out his eyes, let him rot for what he did to so many of my comrades. Sure, some of the people he's chosen to axe were dirty, dirty bastards… but most weren't. But if you, or I, or any Hero really, kills him… what happens after?"

"Sensei…"

"It'll just be the same thing with some other killer. It would give you some brief sense of satisfaction… but then he's just dead. No punishment, no remorse."

After that, Kayama-sensei simply picked up her fork, and began eating again. "Just food for thought, alright?"

Tenya remained silent, continuing to eat his own food.

They wouldn't talk about it again, after that. But the thoughts remained.

]

Would bring his brother to justice.

Midoriya stepped forward. He seemed to be fully embracing the persona of Guidance, the nervousness that often covered him put to the side.

"Hello, Stain."

Midoriya appeared calm, by Tenya could tell he was spring-loaded, ready to move the moment their opponent did. Behind his back, he had pulled out his phone, seemingly sending a text to someone.

The message to Tenya was clear. Stall.

Stain glared, pointing a sword at the two of them. "Those are Hero costumes, but you are children."

Midoriya shrugged, his veneer of false confidence shaky. "Correct. We are both Heroes in training. Guidance and Engentive."

Stain glared straight at Tenya. "The brother of Ingenium. Are you here for vengeance?"

Tenya returned the glare. "I cannot deny that I wish to see you brought to justice. Both for my brother and all of the other Heroes you have killed or maimed, be they false or true. However, I will not let that prevent me from stopping you!"

"Hmph. As far as I know, all Heroes are false Heroes. You children show bravado, but I must do my work. If you leave now, you will live."

He wanted them to leave!? That was Ridiculous. "You- "

"Native. Age Twenty-seven. Quirk: Tracking. Known for his brutal takedowns and generally impolite personality. Also known for his politeness towards heteromorphs and his regular donations to cultural preservation charities, especially since he often gets disapproval for speaking out about his nature as a half-Native American and their struggles, especially them still trying to preserve their culture after so many years. He lives in an upper middle-class apartment, and he has no close relatives that live in Japan. Yet, he stays."

Stain looked to Midoriya, confused, while he simply shrugged. "I was in the middle of my Support Hero Licencing exam when this started, Stain. In order to know how to get the approval of the judges, I made sure to do research into every Hero that had ever been a judge, even if that plan was for naught with them bringing people in from elsewhere. Native was on that list. He's not a perfect man, but he has saved many lives. What happens when you kill him?"

"Hmph. No matter how good he is, a fake is a fake. Another 'Hero' off the list is a good thing."

"And when two more come in his place? What then? Do you kill them too? Do you… enjoy it?"

Stain's eyes widened, his eyes snapping to Midoriya, all attention off of Native, who had gotten the hint and had begun to crawl away. "You- "

"There are loopholes in every statement you make, Stain. If you truly wished to save Hero society by killing the bad Heroes, you wouldn't just target the Heroes you thought were evil at random. Do your research, and it's easy to differentiate between the two. Why not stay as Stendhal, then? Show the world what a good Hero is by working without pay. But instead… you kill them."

(Midoriya had clearly done his research. All his points matched with his own research, but he wasn't about to say that out loud and get in trouble.)

Stain continued to glare. "Leave."

Tenya shook his head, moving to a posture to use his quirk.

(The revelation that Midoriya himself had no quirk was strange at first. Considering how he had defeated him when they sparred, though… he would be fine.)

"I'm afraid we can't do that, Stain."

Midoriya reached into his coat, grabbing… something, while Tenya shouted out his frustration. "You are nothing but a Serial Killer, Stain. And you shall be brought to justice!"

At that, Stain seemed to snap, leaping forward with a dark scowl that almost made Tenya falter. "No! I shall Purge thE FAKES! MY JOB IS NOT YET DONE!"

*CLANG*

 Stains dash forward was interrupted by Guidance, having pulled their weapon, a steel sword (…How did it fit in there, even when folded?). "Engentive!"

Tenya nodded, dashing forward. He landed a solid kick on Stain, launching him backwards. The Villain got back up, seemingly barely winded.

Midoriya gripped his sword with one hand, reaching into his coat. "Come on, Engentive!"

Tenya nodded.

He would bring justice to Tensei, and everyone else the Hero Killer hurt, by ensuring the man rotted far out of reach.

"Right!"

*FAKOOOM*

Sorahiko took a heavy breath, looking at the Noumu in front of him. It was really getting harder to do this as he got older.

His eyes snapped to the people behind him. "Well? This thing isn't going to be down for long! Scram!"

The people at least complied, being quick to book it. Of course, moments later, the stupid thing was getting up again. At least those ten Heroes and that kid who prattled on about the future had crushed the other one with a car until it stopped moving.

Sorahiko scowled. He would simply have to stall for time. He had lost track of Kaibara in the chaos, the boy having gotten permission to fight back and practically immediately booking it to who knows where.

"Alright, you son of a bitch. Let's do this again."

Sorahiko took in as much air as he could as the Noumu screamed. If he timed it right, he could knock a hole into the tongue-

*CRASH*

His train of thought was interrupted by a figure crashing through the street, colliding with the Noumu in a rather unpleasant crunch.

The figure was short, matching the description of the Villains the radio report had mentioned. That meant…

"Aw, Hell!"

Sorahiko jumped out of the way as four Heroes came tumbling into the street, another Villain on their tail.

To their credit, the group was quick to slide into place with Sorahiko, spinning around to face their opponent, who had quickly picked up their injured party.

Nedzu aimed his revolver at the large Villain, all the while looking to Sorahiko. "Ah, Torino-San. It's been all too long!"

Sorahiko scowled. "It's been a week."

While Nedzu chuckled, Sorahiko looked to the remaining Heroes. Ms. Joke sported a rather nasty looking arm, probably broken. Manual seemed alright, other than a nasty cut on the head. Ms. Joke's intern had a bunch of bullet marks on his chest plate, but the thing seemed to have kept said bullets from piercing through. Outside of that, he seemed alright, but beleaguered. He knew the feeling.

The smaller Villain scowled. "What the hell, Ma-aaan?"

"I dunno! One moment the kid slapped me across the face, next you were gone."

"Damnit…"

Nedzu smiled. "You appear to be outnumbered, friends. Do you wish to surrender?"

The taller of the two Villains shook their head. "I'm afraid not! But we are outnumbered, so… bye!"

Before the Heroes could react, a deep swirling mist appeared behind the Villains and the actually unconscious this time Noumu. Nedzu fired a shot, but the larger Villain blocked it with their large weapon, disappearing into the fog.

Sorahiko released the breath he had been holding, sighing. "They're gone…"

Nedzu nodded. "It is unfortunate, but it means they won't be causing any more trouble tonight. Are you injured, Torino-San? We should be heading to the emergency shelter that's being set up."

He shook his head. "I need to find my Intern first. Don't know where he ran off to."

Ms. Joke's kid intern coughed, raising a hand with his phone in it.

"I think… I can help with that."

"Grah!"

Izuku jumped back as Stain made another forward push, attempting to reach him.

His left arm pulsed in pain, lacerations abundant. Only one large gash was leaking blood, but Izuku had managed to quicky bind it with what little medical tape he had. He had been forced to discard his coat during the chaos, leaving him with without anything but his gloves and his determination.

Stain stood up, still only slightly tired despite Izuku's best effort to disorientate him, and-

"Engentive, Stop!"

Before Izuku could react, Iida charged forward, attempting a kick to the Hero Killer.

*SLASH*

The kick was met with a heavy slash of one the killer's many knives, leaving a trail of blood as the boy tumbled down the alleyway.

Stain then… licked the blade. The man's eyes pulsed.

What was that?

"I… why can't I move!?"

Shit.

Blood based paralysis quirk. That was how he got so many Heroes. Freeze them, bleed them out. Izuku had guessed it had something to do with blood, since Stain specialised in swords, but-

Izuku was forced out of his panicked analysis by Stain once again charging forward, seemingly deigning to leave Iida for later.

Don't let him get your blood. Stall.

He rolled to the side, pulling open one of the few remaining flash grenades he had on his toolbelt and throwing it into the air.

*TWING*

It didn't do much to deter the Hero Killer. Instead, the man began to swing wildly, forcing Izuku further into the alleyway in order to dodge his attacks.

Eventually, both sides seemed to regain their wits, coming to a standstill.

Izuku took a heavy breath, not looking away from the Hero Killer, who was finally started to look a little ragged. Nonetheless, the man was fast, and Izuku knew it wasn't over yet.

He just had to hope backup would be on the way.

Stain sent a glare at Izuku, raising one of his swords that had not yet been discarded.

"You fight well, Guidance. Perhaps you have the potential to be a true Hero… but I cannot let you interrupt my purge."

Izuku nodded. "I'm sure you see it as noble, but you cause far more harm than good!"

The Hero Killer shook his head. "You are as blind to the truth as the rest of them."

Izuku braced as the Hero Killer stepped forward. He still had a few pieces of gear left. He would fight for as long as he could.

Before Stain could step forward, however-

"SSSSSSCCCKKKKRAAAWWWW!"

All of Izuku's plans went out the window as a Noumu crashed into the Hero Killer from above.

Bad idea bad idea BAD IDEA!

Alright, maybe jumping onto the back of a monster wasn't Sen's brightest moment, but the thing was trying to destroy a train with a bunch of civilians on it! He couldn't just leave the thing be!

The mini shoulder Yousetsu had won the argument with the mini shoulder Tsu, and he had jumped on in a spur of the moment choice.

Apparently, because of course, having a target on top of your head broke the thing's programming or brainwashing or whatever the hell, and it just started going batshit.

Eventually, he was high enough that he couldn't exactly get off, and he needed stability, so he had grabbed onto the head and-

It was gross, and sticky, he was definitely going to get some kind of disease, but it had worked.

It stunned the thing for long enough that he could grab onto its shoulders, locking his legs around the waist.

It took some finagling, but eventually he managed to figure out how to aim the thing by shifting his weight, if not unreliably, since it seemed to have forgotten that he was there.

With nothing else to do, he trucked it to the last point of relevance, being the address Izuku had sent him on his phone before Sen had gone after what was now his ride.

(Thank hell his pockets had zips, which saved his phone, even if he couldn't actually look at it.)

It took a few blind guesses, but he eventually ending up swooping a small distance from the alleyway Izuku had pinned.

So, well, when he finally got close and he saw an alleyway with Stain, he picked the first thing that came to mind.

He landed another gross wack to the Noumu's brain, causing it to drop down, screeching.

Which led to, well, direct collision.

At least he managed to get his arms and legs out fast enough to jump off the thing, even if he came tumbling into the alleyway at a rather dangerous speed, forcing him to use his quirk to stabilize himself.

"Owwwww…"

"Centrifugal!"

Sen sighed, doing his best to subtly use Gyrate to get as much gunk off of his hands as possible before Izuku would notice. "How's… that… for an entrance?"

Sen turned to his ride, which had thoroughly defeated the Hero Killer- oh, ok, guess not.

As Stain started to push the Noumu off of himself, Sen turned to his classmate with a growl. "How did you manage to find the Hero Killer? I thought you were meant to be doing an exam!"

Izuku blushed. "Well, we were just ending when the attack began, and we got separated from Nedzu, and I figured 'hey, why would therebeanoumuattackinhosuandthenimappedwereinhosuStainmightbeand- Wait, how did you managed to ride that Noumu!?"

Sen grinned, heaving. "Gran Torino's a good teacher and I'm good at adapting. I'd say you're lucky I had a good enough memory to point it in the direction of that address you sent, though…"

"Enough!"

The Hero Killer had finally pushed himself out from under the Noumu. He looked decidedly worse for wear, one of his arms definitely being broken, and his mask had been discarded to reveal a rather freaky looking face.

Sen turned to face the Villain, putting on his best smirk despite the fact that had was just about ready to pass out. "So… this is the famous Hero Killer, Huh? Pretty disappointing."

Izuku's phone vibrated in his pocket, and his eyes moved to the alleyway.

Sen chose to grin, winding up his arms in a show of might. "Alright, Guidance, you've done enough. I'll end this in a flash!"

Stain stepped forward, glaring. "You won't be enough!"

The Villain charged towards Sen, forcing the boy to leap back with a twirl.

He chuckled again, before screaming loudly. "AS IF!"

Sen Leaped forward, his arms spinning as fast as he could, pulling from Gran Torino's training.

Then, the piece de la resistance. Make yourself look as mad as possible.

He pulled off the same trick he had used against Shouto, all but screaming and gnashing his teeth.

It was one of false confidence, and in a second it would be processed as one, but it was just about enough to confuse the Villain for a moment.

(His hands still looking... dirty probably helped)

Stain failed to react in time thanks to the combination of tiredness and confusion, being knocked by the full force of Sen's enhanced punch, sending him out of the alleyway and into the street…

And right into the crowd of Heroes.

Sen smiled, then, as he landed on his feet. "don't worry, Stain. I'm not only backup here."

The Hero Killer's eyes snapped up, sure… but Slackjaw was faster, and before he could react…

*WHAM*

Hitoshi couldn't blame Sen for looking maybe a little smug. After all, well, he had just helped take out the Hero Killer. It couldn't exactly be held against him.

Hitoshi's kill steal had been decidedly less glamorous, but you certainly weren't going to hear himcomplaining.

The group of Heroes had quickly tied up the very rapidly beaten unconscious Hero Killer (His new staff had left a solid indent on the man's head. Hah.) and had begun giving medical attention to those with the worst injuries.

Himself, Izuku, Sen and The Iida boy, who had managed to get up, would be on the way to the hospital, apparently. Considering how sore Hitoshi's chest was after those impacts, he wasn't going to complain.

Gran Torino whacked his intern with his cane, although he was smirking as he looked to the four boys. "you kids are nuts, you know that? Those Villains, the Noumu, and now this?"

Izuku bowed, nervousness returning now that the battle was over. "Sorry, sir… I wasn't sure we'd get another chance."

Nedzu walked over from the unconscious Native, sporting a bandage on one of his own arms. "Well, you saved a life, so… I'm proud of you four. I will say… credit for this will remain anonymous, yes?"

"Definitely." "Please, Sensei!" "Oh, thank hell…" "I do think that would be wise…"

Nedzu nodded. "It will be done. For now, let's get you to safety, no?"

As the Heroes separated, preparing for the arrival of Medics and the police (And thankfully, no reporters. This would be kept under wraps), Iida bowed to the three twilight students. "I… must profusely thank you all for helping me bring the Hero Killer to justice. Should you need assistance, I promise the full might of the Iida Family will be at your beck and call."

Izuku, clearly at his limit from his injuries (just a few more minutes, boss…), simply nodded. "R-right, Iida-kun. It was just what a Hero would do!"

Hitoshi shrugged. "I was just here at the end. But… I suppose that dinner I was going to get with Sen and Izuku will need to be rescheduled."

"Hitoshi, no!"

"GET DOWN!"

Their conversation was interrupted as The Noumu (How the hell, Sen said the thing was DEAD!) swooped out of the alleyway, grabbing a hold of Izuku before rapidly flying away.

"BOSS!" "MIDORIYA-KUN!"

Nedzu quickly scrambled, but by the time he had unholstered his weapon, the thing was already too high in the air.

Hitoshi took a step back, glaring. "Damnit! It's too fast!"

*PWING*

Suddenly, the Noumu crashed to the ground, stunned, Izuku tumbling out of his hands onto the ground. Stain, unbound from his ropes, dashed forward and stabbed the Noumu with a hidden blade, killing it with a quick piercing strike to the head.

It took a lot to get up from all that injury. Like him or not, Hitoshi had to admit that the guy had guts.

The man turned around, and Hitoshi did his best not to flinch.

"The Heroes of this world… should be purged."

Stain's eyes seemed to glow in the dark, and a dark scowl covered his face.

"Perhaps… there is hope. There may be true Heroes yet… BUT… in order to bring about a bright future for them… Blood must be sown! Come and get me, Heroes! You can try! But… the only one who can kill me…"

Hitoshi took a step back as Stain reared his head up. So, that was what it meant to intimidate.

"Is… ALL MIGHT!"

And then, Like Stain had used his quirk…

Everything froze.

TEN HOURS LATER:

 "A rib pierced his lung, huh? What an anticlimactic end."

Izuku smiled as Hitoshi chuckled. "You can say that again."

The four of them had been put into a room together, rushed to Hosu General Hospital. Thankfully, none of their injuries would have long term consequences.

Izuku's own arm injury thankfully was shallow enough that no nerves or muscles had been severed, but he would own a nasty scar.

"And those two people you fought? Teleported away.?"

Hitoshi shrugged. "I mean, yeah, but I'll still consider it a win, considering they were the ones who ran away."

Sen snorted. "Hell yeah, Hitoshi."

"You did all do well!"

The boys all turned to the door, where They found Nedzu and a figure Izuku didn't recognise.

The figure bowed. "Good day to you, Children. I am Kenji Tsuragamae, Japan's Chief of police."

Oh.

Sen quickly scowled. "Oi. We didn't break any laws!"

Nedzu nodded. "No, you did not! Rather…"

Tsuragamae shook his head. "I'm here to thank you four. You acted as Heroes in Hosu's time of need. Even though you are not licenced Heroes, your mentors vouched for you. There will be no trouble today, thankfully. I will note that the public has been made aware of Stain's capture, but not of your role in it."

Nedzu chuckled. "The news covering the events of yesterday has been… chaotic, as I'm sure you'll find when you get access to your phones, but you'll be happy to know that the public is enraptured by the question of who these mysterious Heroes who contributed to the defeat of the Hero Killer were, though! Oh, and Native sends his regards."

Sen flopped back onto his bed. "Thank hell. I was worried I was going to have to stage a breakout there."

"That was your first reaction?" "Duh, I could be arrested, but Zu needs to be out and about, ya know!" "U-um… thanks, I think?"

Izuku looked to Iida, who simply smiled from his own bed, not looking to interrupt the moment.

Tsuragamae chuffed. "I'm afraid neither myself nor Nedzu can stay long. The attacks of yesterday have caused a lot of the force to be all hands-on deck, for now. Before, then, though, there is one last thing for me to do…"

Attacks? Wait, pay attention to the now, find out later-

The dog headed man quickly pulled out a small box, passing it to Izuku.

"I believe this was meant to be given to you yesterday, but the process was… interrupted. I offered to deliver it to you instead, woof."

Cracking open the small box, Izuku's eyes widened.

'MIDORIYA IZUKU

FIVE FOR, TWO AGAINST'

Alongside the simple piece of paper… sat Izuku's Provisional Support Hero Licence.

"I… I did it!"

"HELL YEAH, ZU!" "Good job, Boss." "That is excellent, Midoriya!"

Izuku smiled jubilantly, tears dotting his eyes. He was going to be a Hero!

Nedzu gave him a small pat on the leg, smiling. "I am beyond proud of you, Midoriya-Kun. You are going to be an excellent Hero."

"T-thanks, Nedzu-Sensei!"

Hitoshi chuckled. "Now you can order everyone around and they have to listen. Hey, there's this one asshole from 2-B…"

As Izuku laughed alongside his friends, he smiled, holding the licence in his hands.

He had made the first step towards the future.

*CRASH*

"GREENIE, I LEAVE YOU ALONE FOR FOUR DAYS, AND YOU- "

Oh dear.

The bubbling noise of the Noumu in their vats was simply… fascinating.

His projects were truly coming to fruition.

Soon, he'd be out of this damn chair.

"How are Tomura and his group's wounds, Garaki?"

"They will be alright within a few days, sir. They are currently celebrating their… victory. The release of the Hero Killer's final speech is certainly bringing out support in droves, I suppose, especially since the second attack has accentuated the chaos. But…"

(He felt a bubble of pride in that one. That group had been a long-term project of his, and it had paid off rather well.)

"What is it?"

Garaki shuddered, as usual. Good. "I do not mean to question you, sir, but… is this not negative progress for Tomura?"

He shook his head. "In some ways, it is, but in the long term, it will be advantageous. Removing some of his emotional inhibitors is allowing him to get attached to his teammates… which will make him all the more powerful when they are lost."

"I see…"

"In any case, it does not hurt to be prepared for all eventualities. You mentioned you found a possible candidate. Tell me."

"R-Right! I found an interesting connection… we missed Two Shimuras."

Oh?

"Skybreak was quick to cut off her extended family, having their information purged from our accessible databases… but she had a sibling."

"Long since dead, I imagine?"

"Right. But he had a daughter. Attraction of small objects, like her father, an offshoot of the main Shimura line. She then had a son, making Skybreak his Great Aunt."

"And that son is a viable candidate?"

"Mentally… no. but physically… he is a blank slate. By the D.N.A sample I acquired of him… possibly even more viable than Tomura."

"Hm. Show me a picture."

Garaki quickly moved to his tablet, revealing the picture on his mask.

The boy was short, sure, but he had dark green hair, and… piercing green eyes.

It's... perfect.

"Where is this boy now?"

"Miraculously… he is amongst Tomura's enemies. 1-T."

All For One folded his arms, looking at the image in front of them.

Hmm…

He chuckled, cogs of further plans turning in his head.

"How very interesting…"