Chapter 4: A Legal Concern/A Criminal Man
Shouta already feels the headache coming on. He'd started looking into the Aldera School District later that same evening, and his results already disturbed him. The Aldera District lauded alumni 'with high potential.' Anyone with a brain could tell what they actually meant was 'with powerful Quirks.' Worse, some of these children the school was so set on promoting had only graduated from Elementary School. Alarm bells ring in Shouta's head. Ah yes, the age-old interview question: where did you go to elementary school? They're clearly responsible for how successful you've become. Further digging of revealed most of these 'high potential' students had average grades at best. Shouta reclines in his chair with a long-suffering groan. This is going to be a long day.
Several hours later, Shouta had a strong base for the investigation. Nothing damning, but he certainly had enough to investigate officially. The advertised 'high potentials' gave full names and pictures, so finding where they ended up was far from the hardest thing Shouta had done. Several of them had ended up outside the Aldera School District for high school, some going into private schools. When he called those places to ask for more information, it turned out these students were highly memorable. It's not very common for a promising student to arrive acting like a self-entitled delinquent. A few teachers even reported suspending Aldera students within their first day. Some potential.
Huh.
Why didn't any of these teachers notice something was wrong with the students from Aldera specifically?
As it turns out, they did. Hard to miss, really. But anytime one of these schools reported their concerns, the investigation would drop in a few days. One of the schools even offered a public apology. If that didn't just scream blackmail, then Shouta needed to find a new career path. How the hell did this random school district have the power to threaten other school districts into silence?
Shouta leans back in his chair, pinching his nose, and sighs. Nedzu hadn't told him much about the Midoriya boy that caught his interest, but he could read between the lines. The Rat had been suspicious of the Aldera district even before his report on the boy's behavior. That the kid thought a Pro Hero—or at least someone who works with Pro Heroes, since he wouldn't have recognized an Underground Hero—would be a threat to him spoke volumes. The kid clearly doesn't have a strong Quirk that Aldera bends over backwards for.
Shouta sends the Rat an email compiling everything he found. Nedzu has more resources to investigate how Aldera silences complaints. Shouta looks at the clock and groans. It's almost time for his patrol. The Rat told him to drop in unannounced sometime this week, and Shouta suspected the sooner the better. Tomorrow he would be giving this junior high a personal visit.
Shouta wasn't totally sure what he expected Aldera Junior High to look like. Shiny and modern showcasing the wealth that allowed it to silence other schools? Dilapidated and decrepit like the morals of everyone who worked there? That's not fair. The janitors are probably okay. Probably. If he were being honest though, Shouta should have expected it to look like it did. Totally average in every way. Brick and plaster outer gate, steel and concrete main building. Four stories, clock on the front. If someone asked Shouta to describe the most stereotypical school he could, it would probably look like this.
"Can I help you?" the receptionist, a well-dressed young man, looks up from his computer screen. Wordlessly, Shouta pulls out his Hero License and shows it to him. The receptionist pales.
"Aizawa Shouta. I'm a teacher at UA." Shouta drawls. "I'm here on behalf of our principal regarding potential future students. I'd like to speak with the principal here and possibly observe some classes." If he frames this right, he'll probably get them to incriminate themselves for him. As if to prove his point, color immediately returns to the receptionist's face.
"Of course! I'll let Principal Orugana know!" he pushes a button on the landline phone dock and speaks into the mic, explaining Shouta's purpose for coming. Shouta hears this Principal Orugana respond through the phone speaker. The receptionist looks up at him. "Go right in!" Shouta grunts and obliges.
Principal Orugana sits at his desk. Shouta's first impression of him is 'sharp.' His face is angular, his suit fitted. His grin confident but not reaching his eyes, which are narrow.
"I hear you're looking for potential students," the principal says. Shouta nods.
"On behalf of the principal of UA."
"Yes, I'm not surprised. Bakugou's such a promising student, I expected UA to notice him." Shouta stays quiet. The easiest way to get information out of someone like this is to let them run with their own assumptions and not interject, forcing them to continue the conversation themselves. It only takes a few seconds for Orugana to break. "Bakugou Katsuki, yes? He has the best grades in the Third Year. Not to mention his Quirk. It's perfect for heroism!" Shouta's eyes narrow. "With Bakugou's talents, it's only natural he would be scouted early by UA."
"Could you go back a moment," Shouta says coolly. "What's this about Bakugou's Quirk?"
"It's strong, possibly the strongest Quirk any student in the Aldera district has ever had. It's called Explosions. It allows him to ignite his nitroglycerin sweat by generating sparks in his palms." That sure sounded safe to use around other people. Orugana leans forward in his chair, resting his elbows on the desk. "And his control is impeccable, Mr. Aizawa. He can determine the exact size of the blast, from a small pop to a bigger burst."
"You've seen this control?"
"We at Aldera believe that every ability one possesses could be critical to one's future. To stunt such growth would be absurd."
"You encourage Quirk usage amongst the students."
"So long as it isn't disruptive, I don't see the harm."
"The harm, sir," Shouta says. "is that you just confessed to encouraging students to illegally use their Quirks without proper public-use permission." Orugana's confident grin wavers. His hand clench together, and Shouta can see the knuckles whiten. Orugana opens and closes his mouth a few times as he thinks of a response. Shouta waits for about five seconds before putting him out of his misery.
"I must not have been clear earlier," Shouta pointedly ignores that he did so intentionally, "I'm here on behalf of Principal Nedzu because he has taken a personal interest in one of your students. And in his interactions with this student, he has come to believe that this school district is actively engaging in criminal negligence or abuse, as well as encouraging illegal Quirk usage." Shouta smiles. It is not a kind smile. "I am here to see if these concerns have any merit. Clearly, they do."
"Now, just a minute here, Aizawa!"
"You've already wasted enough time with this farce. As a Pro Hero, who is part of an active investigation, I am demanding you hand over your archived security footage as evidence. Failure to comply will result in charges of interfering with an investigation and open you and the school to public scrutiny." Shouta cocks his head and glares. "More so than you are already, I mean."
Shouta steps directly in front of the principal's desk and leans down to be at eye level. Orugana balls his fists tight enough that Shouta thinks he can hear the muscles strain. The principal's body trembles, and he bites his lip. His eyes flicker around the room, avoiding the pro hero. Probably trying to find a way out of this. Eventually, Orugana slumps back in his chair.
"Fine," the principal spits. He turns to his computer and types away, pulling up a folder filled with video files.
"Allow me." Shouta retrieves a USB drive from his belt. Orugana hesitates, then moves aside and lets Shouta plug in the drive. Shouta wonders briefly whether the Rat put some kind of virus on this flash drive to give himself a back door into Aldera's network before deciding that he wouldn't need one. Once the process finishes, Shouta removes and pockets the drive once again. He can see himself out. Neither he nor the principal bother saying goodbye.
Nedzu is a master at recognizing patterns, and he does not like the pattern he found. Every investigation into Aldera, which Aizawa already warned him had all been dropped, had officially been settled out of court. What concerns Nedzu is the law firm representing the Aldera District. Most of their clients were large corporations, like Feel Good Inc. How did a relatively small school district afford such good lawyers? No wonder none of the other schools had been able to touch Aldera.
Nedzu's phone lights up with an incoming call. Aizawa. Interesting. He must have decided to have his personal meeting as soon as he could.
"He confessed to the illegal Quirk use on his own," Aizawa says as soon as Nedzu answers. "Was proud of it, even."
"Excellent. Anything else to report?"
"They're grooming some Hero hopeful named 'Bakugou Katsuki.' If he tries out for UA, keep a close eye on him. Also grabbed their security footage archive. Thought you might be interested." Nedzu cackles. What would he do without such competent humans willing to aid him in the destruction of incompetent establishments?
Chapter 5: The First Confrontation/Yet Another Nail
It's about ten minutes after the bell, and Katsuki just wants to go home. It's Monday, his first day back after the villain attacked him. Spending the day with shitty teachers who can't teach him jack, surrounded by his cowardly lackeys who left him to the slime bastard, and worst of all Deku, really fucking sucked. Katsuki took out some of his frustration on the shitty nerd and ended up falling behind all the other students who left for the day. He walks outside, seeing some homeless looking guy standing on the path, a hand to his ear. He's talking to himself too. Crazy homeless people.
"Move it, hobo," he grumbles, shoving his way past the unkempt guy.
"Ah, Kacchan! He's a Pro Hero!" Fuck, Deku, leave me alone would you? Wait, Pro Hero? Katsuki does a double take. The guy's in all black, baggy clothes. His hair is a mess, and it doesn't look like he's slept since before Katsuki was born. Though now Katsuki can see he was using an earpiece.
"Huh? You don't look like any Hero I know." The hobo has the audacity to rolls his eyes at Katsuki.
"I'm an Underground Hero. I'm not supposed to be well known."
"Tch. What's the point of that? If you're gonna be a Hero, why bother if everyone doesn't know you're the best?" He turns to stomp off home.
"Saving lives." Katsuki pauses mid-step. "The point,kid, is saving lives. I don't give a damn about the rankings. I could be the Number One Hero in Japan, but it wouldn't make me better at my job." The hobo turns his back to Katsuki and addresses Deku. "The Rat's looking forward to your next talk." Deku perks up.
"Oh, Nedzu? I'm excited too!" he beams like he didn't just suggest he knew the principal of UA. Bastard's been holding out on him. Laughing behind his back about all the heroes he apparently knows. Katsuki snarls.
"Deku, you shit! Acting all superior to me in class and now I find out you know heroes and didn't tell me?" Deku sputters.
"Acting superior? Kacchan what are you talking-" Katsuki fires a weak explosion to cut him off.
"Don't play dumb you bastard! All this talk of being a Quirkless Hero, like you don't even need a Quirk to surpass me!"
"Kacchan," Deku says slowly, brow furrowed, "Are you an idiot?" Deku blanches when he realizes what he said, but all Katsuki sees is red. He screams and launches himself at Deku. Something pulls him back. Hard. He hits the ground tangled in that hobo's scarf. He tries to blast the damn thing, but his palms don't spark.
"Stop using your Quirk, kid. You're giving me dry eye," the hobo drawls. What the hell does that mean? "Illegal Quirk use and attempted assault right in front of a Pro Hero?"
"You- you're Eraserhead!" Deku exhales, his eyes shining. Fuck's sake, of course the nerd knows who this loser is. "You disable the Quirk Factor of whoever you're looking at!" That explains why his explosions aren't working right now. The dry eye too, if Katsuki had to guess.
"The hell's your problem, asshole? He's a Quirkless Deku! Who gives a shit?" Wrong answer, apparently, as the damn scarf constricts.
"Deku… you keep calling him that. What do you mean?"
"Short for Dekunobou, 'can't do anything,' because he can't!" Deku flinches, and Katsuki smirks in momentary satisfaction.
"I give a shit, Bakugou Katsuki," Katsuki stops struggling in the scarf at the sound of his full name. "I am here on behalf of Principal Nedzu of UA to investigate Aldera for encouraging illegal Quirk use. It seems they've also encouraged you to make a pariah of Midoriya." The scarf pulls Katsuki up, dangling him in front of the hobo, who Katsuki can now see has glowing eyes and floating hair. "Do you know why he sent me?" the hobo doesn't wait for an answer. "I'm a teacher at UA. I expelled my entire class this year because they have no potential for heroics. And from what I've seen? Neither do you." Katsuki scoffs. Of course he has potential! His Quirk is perfect. Dumbass is just jealous because his Quirk only cancels others instead of letting him do things.
"Um," Deku says and Katsuki rolls his eyes. "Eraserhead sir? What- you mentioned illegal Quirk use? Isn't— I thought— they weren't being disruptive?"
"Midoriya, he destroyed your property and just tried to attack you." Sure, talk about Katsuki like he's not here. That's fine.
"But it's fine?" Deku says, scrunching his eyebrows. "I'm Quirkless." The hobo pinches his nose.
"It's not fine," he says. "You shouldn't be treated that way. And I have enough evidence from today alone to get this school shut down for negligence and abuse, and hopefully the rest of the Aldera district." Deku blanches and for once Katsuki doesn't blame him. Negligence and abuse? The fuck? "But don't you have homework from the Rat?" Deku stiffens. He dashes past, waving.
"Sorry, Mr. Aizawa, I have to get home!" Katsuki clicks his tongue as he watches him disappear through the gate.
"I heard you want to be a Hero," the hobo says after several seconds of silence.
"I will be a hero. The Best." It's a vow he made over ten years ago and he'll damn well keep it.
"Then you'll be delighted to hear that I've decided not to blacklist you from every Hero school in the country." The hobo's eyes bore into Katsuki. "But only because it's clear this place has taught you to act like this. I sincerely hope that in the next ten months you'll have cleaned up your act." His scarf unwarps around Katsuki, and he drops to the ground. Katsuki stands up, adjusting his bag, and sets off home, ignoring the muttered "problem children" from the Hero.
The hobo doesn't know what he's talking about.
Bakugou Katsuki will surpass All Might.
Bakugou Katsuki will be the Best.
Ever since Aizawa brought him the files, Nedzu had been pouring over the security footage. There was evidence—so, so much evidence that Nedzu could likely get Aldera Junior High shut down within the hour, but Nedzu would never settle for a small victory in this case. His fur bristles, his teacup rattling as his paw shakes. These monsters saw one of the most promising minds Nedzu had even had the pleasure of meeting and had the audacity to try and destroy him.
Patience. Nedzu takes a deep breath. Anger will only make him sloppy.
As frustrating as it is, Nedzu knows that this situation is delicate. If he acts carelessly, the Aldera district will burn the Junior High to save the Elementary and High School. He'll need a significant offence, preferably more than one, that would justify investigating the district itself and not the school. Criminals are much like bugs, Nedzu finds. The moment a threat presents itself, they scurry out of sight to continue another day. Nedzu will not give them that other day.
Currently, the 47th clip of Bakugou Katsuki and Midoriya Izuku played on his screen. And much like the previous 46 clips of these particular students, the moment Bakugou was anywhere near Midoriya, it ended. Nedzu's ears pull back, and his sharp teeth pull at his mouth. No one could deny that this footage was altered. But without the originals, Nedzu wouldn't be able to properly bring Bakugou to heel. It was, however, another nail in Aldera's sizable coffin. And oh, it has been so long since Nedzu was a grave digger.
Chapter 6: Game of Chess/Test of Strength
"And how has your week been?" Nedzu asks. It's Sunday again, which means it's time for Izuku's first official lessons with Nedzu. He can still hardly believe this is happening.
"Good!" Izuku beams, before his face falls slightly, his brow furrowed. "But it, uh, it was weird, too." Nedzu pulls a fine portable chess board out from under his desk and sets it on the table.
"How so?" he asks, setting up the board. Izuku hums.
"Well, I saw Mr. Aizawa on Monday, and he said something about investigating the school for abuse? And for the rest of the week all the teachers seemed on edge."
"Why might that be?" Nedzu places the last pawn into its starting position. "Black or white?"
"White, please. And, uh, I guess, because they're worried about the investigation? But they uh, they didn't do anything, did they?" Nedzu's ears flick. Izuku swallows and moves a pawn forward.
"Well, Midoriya, oftentimes innocent people are nervous around Heroes and Police during such investigations because they are afraid that they might be accused of some wrong-doing, whether warranted or not." Nedzu moves a pawn of his own. "And of course, the guilty are nervous because they might be caught. Paradoxically, it can be more suspicious if a person doesn't seem anxious."
"That's uh, that's why they, why some people say liars don't look you in the eye, right?" Izuku realizes the irony of this question since he himself is currently focusing on the board to avoid looking at Nedzu's face.
"Precisely! Although as I have just alluded, there are many reasons an innocent person may be nervous. Now, back on topic, why do you think your teachers are afraid?" Izuku places a thumb to his lip.
"Mr. Aizawa said that they were encouraging illegal Quirk use, and that it wasn't okay even if it wasn't disruptive, even though I'm Quirkless. And, and he also said something about abuse and neglect, so maybe that? But the teachers never hurt me, so maybe the neglect? But what could they have been doing that they weren't? They were teaching after all." Izuku misses Nedzu's ears flicking again, "Maybe the Quirk use and the neglect is related? Were they supposed to train Quirks somehow?"
"It is fascinating to hear your mind work," Nedzu smiles gently (well, as gently as an animal can smile). "You say your teachers have never hurt you. Have they allowed you to come to harm?" That's different though. Kacchan's going to be a great hero, and he's just the Quirkless kid with no future. It's not like Kacchan ever interrupted class—oh. Okay, so Maybe Kacchan interrupted class a few times. It's fine, his grades are good. He didn't need to pay attention. But the other students did. If they were struggling, and he took time away from the lecture…
"Have your teachers ever hurt you emotionally?" Nedzu asks, moving his Bishop to take Midoriya's Rook. That doesn't count though. He should get over it. Yeah, they would call him out and say he was unrealistic and call him stupid or unevolved if he got an answer wrong, but he shouldn't let things like that get to him. And sure, the teacher called him out for planning to attend UA, then left him at Kacchan's mercy, but he shouldn't be affected by that. Izuku blinks the wetness from his eyes and moves his Knight to take Nedzu's Bishop. Nedzu moves his Rook down.
"Check, and, I do believe, Mate," Nedzu says cheerily. Ah, Izuku sees it now. The Bishop was a trap to draw his Knight away from the King. "You did wonderfully, though. I enjoyed myself." Izuku nods, hollow. He's not totally sure what he's feeling at the moment, but whatever it is this loss is amplifying it.
"Midoriya," Nedzu begins softly. "Your teachers at Aldera? They are wrong. You aren't stupid, you aren't some genetic freak to be scorned or mocked. And they aren't qualified to train Quirks, nor are supposed to allow the usage of any Quirk on campus." Izuku looks up at the principal's face. "They have hurt you. And I'm so, so sorry for that. You don't deserve it." And Izuku can see it in his eyes. Nedzu means it. That's all it takes for him to break down into wailing sobs right there in Nedzu's office, with the principal patting his shoulder and telling him it's okay to feel.
"What did you learn from our game?" Nedzu asks once Izuku has calmed down again (and rehydrated).
"I lost focus on the greater picture," Izuku mumbles. "I wanted to take your pieces instead of put you in checkmate." Nedzu nods.
"Self-reflection is good, Midoriya. Do not let it become self-flagellation. Would you like to know a simple trick to help you strategize in the future?" Izuku nods, wiping his face with his palm. "I ask myself, 'What is the single worst thing that my opponent could to do my plan?' and then preempt that."
"What about the second-worst thing?" Izuku says and Nedzu grins predatorially. It feels safe, for some reason, as though Nedzu is turning that grin against Izuku's enemies.
"You're learning!" Nedzu cackles. "Yes, you are left vulnerable to a sub-optimal play by your opponent. But never assume your opponent will make a mistake. Capitalize on them should they appear, but always assume your opponent is doing exactly what they mean to do. And with experience, you will find you usually have everything you need should your opponent attack you in a different way than you were preparing for." Nedzu pushes his chair back, hops down, and walks around the desk to Izuku. "Before we break for lunch, I have one more question for you. Aizawa informed me that the prevalent opinion at Aldera was that your Quirk and your value to society were one and the same. Do you believe this is true?" Izuku hesitates.
"I- well, uh, they've said," he slumps in his chair.
"I can assure you, Midoriya, that this hostility to weak Quirks, or in your case none at all, is unusual." Izuku snaps to attention. "I have a personal interest in discrimination as I'm sure you can imagine, so I took the liberty of researching many forms of it over the years. And what you've gone through is an extreme."
"It… it is?" Nedzu nods solemnly.
"But know this. Whatever is causing this extremism amongst your teachers? I will find out." Nedzu smiles. "I do believe it is time for lunch. After that, Aizawa will begin your physical training."
(Izuku gets Lunch Rush's autograph that day)
Izuku fidgets in place. He's wearing workout clothes (Nedzu suggested he bring some), standing on the dirt field outside the Physical Education grounds on campus. Across from him is Eraserhead, or Mr. Aizawa as he requested to be addressed during training.
"Once you're done stretching," Mr. Aizawa says, "I'll get a baseline for your capabilities. You'll be running through a handful of exercises like the ones you're supposed to do in your gym class."
He's right. They are the exercises he's used to. 50-Meter Dash, Grip Strength, Standing Long Jump, Repeated Side Steps, Ball Throw, Endurance Run, Seated Toe-Touch, and Sit Ups. Standard stuff really.
Izuku puts his best effort into the exercises, but he doesn't feel terribly impressive with any of his scores except the Distance Run. Mr. Aizawa concurs.
"About below-average to average on every test for your age group. Most Hero Hopefuls will have some level of physical training. If you don't want to be left behind, you'll need to do better than them." Izuku nods, wiping water from his bottle off his lips. Mr. Aizawa grins, his mouth stretching ear to ear. "Luckily, ten months should be plenty of time for you to build some good habits. Nedzu's already planning a daily workout routine for you, to help get you in shape. We'll be doing these tests again every week, in addition to sparring. Now, how well can you throw a punch?"
Not very well, it turned out.
At least he knew to keep his thumb outside his fist.
It's a cycle after a while. Mr. Aizawa orders him to attack in some way, watches Izuku screw it up, and corrects it. A tighter stance here. An arm turned wrong there. By the end of it, Izuku is exhausted but beaming. Mr. Aizawa grunts at the end of the drills.
"Good effort for a first timer. We won't start sparring for a few weeks, but Nedzu is including drills like this in your daily exercises. You have potential. Don't waste it."
Izuku doesn't remember the last time he's cried tears of joy so much in one day.
Chapter 7: An Awaited Intervention/An Overdue Conversation
Nedzu takes a brief glance away from his work to watch Aizawa demonstrate basic form to Midoriya. He'll have to let the young man know how impressed he is for being up to physical training after their emotionally draining chess-time discussion. And after Midoriya's breakdown, Nedzu refuses to allow him back to Aldera. He will obliterate that disgrace of a school as soon as possible.
It took him longer than he would like, but Nedzu has almost catalogued every instance of altered footage. Not all of it was as blatant as the removal of every interaction between Bakugou and Midoriya.
Presumably, Nedzu reflects, that had been a rush job after Bakugou declared his intent to apply for UA. It was several months until those applications were due, but time always passes faster than you expect. They probably intended on doing a more thorough job later.
Some edits were more subtle, shifting the camera's focus away from incidents of bullying, or moving to obscure that a teacher had been present.
The altered footage alone should be enough to call in the Mustufa Department of Education, but Nedzu wants more. And, luckily, he has it. Aizawa's testimony—Nedzu snarls at the thought of calling that thing by the title of educator— on Principal Orugana, and the silenced complaints about the Junior High, demonstrate that the problem can be traced to the higher administration of the Aldera District, who should have stepped in a long time ago. Nedzu sports a feral grin as he compiles the results of the investigation into an email to the Mustafu Department of Education. Nedzu would prefer if he could place a single phone call and have everyone involved thrown in Tartarus, but he'll have to settle for letting the Ministry of Education and the police handle it from here.
And if he makes a few calls, cashes in a few favors, pulls a few strings to speed up their response?
Well.
No one would ever trace it to him, anyway.
It hurts more, Izuku thinks, now that he knows that what he's experiencing is wrong and that he doesn't deserve it. I've only spoken to Nedzu twice, but he's been nicer to me than every teacher I've had in the last decade. Combined. Not that that's a high bar or anything. Comparing learning from his schoolteachers to learning from Nedzu really emphasizes just how bad it is. Izuku wonders why he never noticed before.
Izuku takes the best notes he can on Mr. Hoshaku's algebra equations on the board, considering that another student has been throwing paper balls at his head for the last half hour. Izuku's almost impressed by their perseverance. And at the very least they aren't exploding his desk.
Now that he thinks about it, Kacchan's been weirdly quiet since he ran into Eraserhead a week ago. Maybe the hero said something after he left? Izuku expected him to be business as normal after the Sludge Villain, if a bit more irritable than normal. And he was, up until Eraserhead told him off. Izuku drags himself out of his thoughts to finish his notes when the intercom crackles to life. Izuku huffs quietly. They did an announcement of how great Kacchan was a week ago when he came back after the Sludge Villain. They aren't really going to bootlick him again, are they?
They were not, in fact, bootlicking Kacchan.
A part of Izuku almost wishes they were.
"This is the Mustafu Police Department, on behalf of the Mustafu Board of Education." Oh, that couldn't be a good sign. "Until further notice, Aldera Elementary, Junior High, and High School are to cease operation pending a full investigation. Students, please make your way to the gymnasium, where you will check out if able or wait for your parents to collect you if you cannot reasonably get home on your own. Members of staff, please come to the teacher's lounge."
Silence hangs over the room like a blanket of fog.
Mr. Hoshaku stands slack-jawed at the front of the room, the blood draining from his face. Kacchan whirls, teeth snarling, palm up, to glare menacingly at Izuku but stops when he sees the look of bafflement on Izuku's face. Instead, Kacchan clicks his tongue and struts out of the room in the direction of the gym. This snaps Mr. Hoshaku out of whatever stupor he was in, and he clears his throat.
"Class, to the gymnasium, please." And all at once the students are out of their chairs, scrambling to collect their things.
Inko likes having the news on when Izuku is at school. It gives her some white noise, so she isn't alone in a silent apartment.
"We're low on milk too," she mutters, jotting it down on her grocery list when the current report catches her ear.
"-Department of Education have closed the entire Aldera School District, pending further investigation of negligence, abuse, unlicensed Quirk counselors, and encouraging illegal Quirk use, among other crimes. The students have been let out early, with no word of where they'll attend in the meantime."
Inko fumbles for her phone.
Mitsuki's phone buzzes on her desk. She yanks it and shoves it to her ear.
"Ifuku, I do not care that those colors aren't in season right now, they're what the client ordered for that dress and they're what they'll get, Goddamn it!" There's silence over the line for a second, then:
"Mitsuki." That's not the voice of her coworker.
"Inko! Inko, I'm sorry, I thought- never mind, what's wrong?"
"Mitsuki, they—Aldera was just shut down!"
Only years of living with slick sweat prevents Mitsuki from dropping her phone.
Izuku checks himself out at the gym; he lives close enough that he can walk home. He's one of the first people out of Aldera Junior High following the announcement. Lucky for him. He managed to get out before the press swarmed the front gate asking for interviews. Can they even hound minors like that?After learning that the whole 'as long as it's not disruptive' thing was bullshit, Izuku has become aware he is frighteningly ignorant of the law. Hopefully Nedzu can help him with that.
"I'm home!" Izuku calls as he swings open the apartment door. His mother is upon him in an instant, ushering him to the sofa.
"Izuku, have they been hurting you?" she asks, once Izuku has a warm cup of tea in his hands. The moment they announced the school was closing, Izuku knew this conversation was coming. No, he knew sooner. His mother hadn't pressed him about the Quirk use he mentioned to Nedzu last week, but he wasn't going to get out of it again. He closes his eyes.
"…my classmates." He doesn't hear his mother react.
"The teachers?"
"Never stepped in. They—the teachers encouraged it. Said I 'deserved it for being unevolved.'"
"Katsuki is supposed to look out for you," she says gently. He hums.
"'Supposed to.'"
"He… did he hurt you too?"
"…yeah." It's almost a whisper. This time, he hears her hiss.
"How long?"
"Since… since I told him I was Quirkless."
"How bad is it?"
"It's… it's bad, mom."
"Izuku," she says cupping his cheek in her hand, "Why didn't you tell me?" There's no accusation in her voice, which Izuku appreciates.
"I- it's just, I, uh," Izuku starts again, failing to prevent his tears. "You have so few friends; I didn't want you to lose the Bakugous." His mother sighs.
"You come first, Sunshine. Always. But if you'd told me, maybe I could have helped Mitsuki and Masaru reign him in." Izuku grimaces, hiccupping a sob. He'd never thought of that. "It's alright, Sunshine. We should have noticed. I should have noticed. This isn't your fault." She helps him set his teacup on the coffee table. "You shouldn't have had to choose like that. I'll talk to them after they get off work. You won't have to be there." She pulls him close, humming a soft tune and rubbing his back. Izuku doesn't even notice himself falling asleep.
Chapter 8: The Battle Won/The War Revived
It's rather surreal to be told you aren't going to school because all of your teachers were arrested. It's been several days since the police sent him home early and the Department of Education is still tearing the Aldera District apart. Most of the district administration has either resigned, been arrested, or both. It was decided that since the teachers actively groomed students to act out, his classmates would not have any black marks in their records, but their… turbulent histories were noted down for future schools to look through. Schools could not officiallyrefuse the Aldera students, but Izuku doubts many of his ex-classmates will enroll anywhere notable. Checking social media confirms that the Aldera scandal isn't national news, but Izuku doubts anyone in the prefecture hasn't heard about it.
He's still adjusting, to be honest. The thought that everything he's put up with for the past decade—all the brave faces and lies he gave his mother, the covering for Kacchan, the teachers insulting him, the guidance counselor telling him he had no future the one time she did see him—that none of that is normal, scares Izuku. This was something he was certain about. The sun rose in the east, All Might was number one, and Quirkless people were pariahs.
And then the police dragged his teachers out of his school in handcuffs.
With school out, Izuku's spending time at home with his mother. He's felt lighter ever since he admitted that Kacchan had been bullying him. Like a wall between them has disappeared. They've been playing board games, watching movies, or just enjoying each other's company. Izuku knows why. He can see the guilt in her eyes when she turns from him. She blames herself for Izuku hiding his pain, like she blamed herself for his poor genetic lottery.
He talks to her about it over dinner that night. It's a hard conversation. His mother and the Bakugous had met and talked the evening the news broke. Aunt Mitsuki and Uncle Masaru were shocked to hear about Kacchan's behavior. Apparently, the school closing wasn't enough of a reality check for him. He had gone off about how it was Izuku's fault for being too weak to put up with what his classmates did. Despite the best efforts of his parents and Izuku's mother, Kacchan refused to accept anything else as truth. Uncle Masaru suggested therapy, but Kacchan made it clear even if they dragged him, he, as he put it, 'didn't need a fucking shrink like some weakling, and I'm sure as hell not talking to one.' Izuku cringes, but he isn't surprised.
He tells her that it isn't her fault they're fighting ten years of daily conditioning. She tells him that it's not his fault he's been fighting ten years of daily abuse.
Tears are shed.
They are Midoriyas, after all.
Nedzu cackles, spinning in his office chair. The press had arrived at Aldera after the police, but before the arrests, so he had gotten to watch the scum get dragged out of the building and into the waiting police cars. He recorded the broadcast. Self-Care is important, after all. After the effort he put into accelerating the official Department of Education investigation, he knew they would respond within the week. He hadn't anticipated the police storming Aldera Junior High less than 24 hours later. Now, Midoriya would never have to interact with those Quirkist monsters or the children they groomed ever again. As a matter of fact, the young analyst now needed a new source of education. Perhaps… would they even agree to that? I suppose there is only one way to find out! A feral grin stretches across the principal's face. He grabs his desk to stop his spinning chair so he can retrieve his phone. He's lucky that Midoriya Inko works at home, or he would have to wait.
She picks up on the third ring.
"Hello, Midoriya Inko speaking?"
"Mrs. Midoriya! A pleasure to hear your voice again."
"Mr. Nedzu?"
"Please, no honorifics. Nedzu is fine," Nedzu says. "It has come to my attention that your son is currently in need of a new source of education." There is silence over the line for several seconds.
"Nedzu, did you destroy Izuku's school as an excuse to teach him yourself?" Oh, Nedzu likes her. This must be where Izuku inherited it from.
"No, Mrs. Midoriya, it is merely a bittersweet coincidence. Truth be told, I called you the moment the possibility occurred to me." He leans forward in his chair. "I would have destroyed Aldera for anyone, Mrs. Midoriya. But I am fond of your son and wish to see him succeed."
There's another pause. Nedzu always loves when humans actually think about their options. It would save a considerable amount of trouble if they did it more often.
"I will have to talk with Izuku about it. He went for a walk to avoid going stir-crazy, but he should be back soon. We'll have an answer by the end of the day."
"That's all I can ask."
Nedzu turns his attention back to Aldera. While this opening move should be decisive, he doesn't want to risk any of the bugs escaping back to their nests. And that means ensuring their defeat in court. The worst thing that could happen now is acquittal. Unlikely, highly unlikely, but not impossible. And that means researching their lawyers.
About an hour later, Nedzu knows the name of every damned fool who accepted the position to defend one of the Aldera monsters. Now that's strange. They all work for the same firm, but it isn't the firm I expected. Aldera demonstrated a disturbingly powerful legal team previously, the one that silenced every earlier inquiry as to why their students acted like entitled brats. A legal firm that specialized in defending the interests of major corporations. Why change things now?
Nedzu could tell at a glance that this new firm was odd. Practically a shell company when it opened, now apparently a better legal team than Aldera had before? It takes another hour for Nedzu to trace the payments and identify the owners of the new firm.
"Of course," he mutters. "Of course it was you."
And like a particularly gruesome puzzle piece sliding into place, every oddity about Aldera comes into focus in sickening clarity.
The proximity to UA had not gone unnoticed by Nedzu, though he had not found a connection until now.
The Illegal Quirk use was worrying, but Nedzu mistook it as a symptom of the negligence and incompetence of the administration.
The extreme Quirk Bias and Quirk Supremist Ideology amongst the staff had been the entire origin of the investigation. He should've known how deep it truly ran.
But Nedzu failed to grasp the situation for what it was.
He thought of Aldera as a school district corrupt from the top down. He was wrong.
Aldera had never been a school.
Aldera was an indoctrination facility.
And the proof blinked back at him on his computer screen.
Nedzu learned a long time ago how to hide his emotions. It was a survival skill in the lab that experimented on him day in and day out. Hiding himself behind a mask of calm serenity was now a long-ingrained habit. Hiding anger was easy.
It was much harder for him to hide Wrath.
"Yagi," Nedzu says into the phone, trembling in his fury, "Be at UA once classes end."
"Is there something wrong with my paperwork?" the Symbol of Peace asks cautiously, catching the edge to Nedzu's voice.
"No. I need you for a War Meeting."
When Nedzu sent an alert to the teachers' group chat that there would be a War Meeting after school, Shouta felt the ice creep up his spine. Nedzu always made sure to refer to meetings as they were. In all his time there, Shouta had only attended a single War Meeting, when a student had been attacked by a local gang. Nedzu had organized the teachers into destroying the gang so thoroughly that within 18 hours of the meeting, the entire gang had been arrested, and several were catatonic. Those had been the poor bastards that Nedzu had personally dealt with. He shuddered at the memory.
Shouta is the last to arrive, as usual. He sits down at the conference table, noting that All Might is present in his skinny form. Nedzu sits at the head of the table, ears pulled back and teeth visible. Shouta swallows.
"Now that we're all here, I can give the Situation Report." Nedzu produces a folder and tosses it onto the table. Shouta catches the word 'Detnerat' on the cover. "The situation is as follows: The Aldera School District is here in the heart of Mustafu to make it attractive to those aiming for here at UA, the premier Hero School in Japan. The district is, in fact, a scheme to produce Pro Heroes who have certain beliefs, which they can then impress on the public."
"What beliefs are those?" Yagi asks, looking troubled. Good. Nedzu calling a War Meeting meant troubling news.
"Beliefs," Nedzu spits, "agreeable to the revived Meta Liberation Army."
Chapter 9: The War Council/A Fortress Besieged
A moment of silence hits the room. Shouta studies Nedzu carefully, but he already knows what he'll find. Nedzu isn't the type to make idle threats. He called this War Meeting because he is already certain.
"The Meta Liberation Army?" a stunned Kayama asks. "That Quirk supremist movement? Weren't they disbanded decades ago?"
"Destro's Army was eventually defeated, and most of its members incarcerated." Nedzu responds.
"'Most of,'" says Shouta. Nedzu nods.
"Indeed, Destro in fact had a son." A second wave of shock sweeps through the staff. "It was the opinion of the government at the time that the child should not bear the sins of his father." Nedzu pulls several papers out of the file he placed on the desk. "As it turns out, a closer eye perhaps was warranted. The survivors of his father's Army thought he should carry Destro's legacy instead. They raised Destro's son, Yotsubashi Rikiya, to lead a new Meta Liberation Army, one which he has raised in secret."
"And Aldera?" Shouta asks.
"As it turns out, the legal firm representing the Aldera staff is owned by the Detnerat Company, of which Yotsubashi is the CEO." Nedzu retrieves more papers from the file. "There is also a tangible financial connection between each Aldera staff member and Detnerat. In other words, every member of staff is a member of this new MLA movement. It's a rather elegant plan. If they encounter students who have a reasonable chance at Heroics, they groom the child to believe in MLA values. Meanwhile, the other students, when taken out of their influence, will feel oppressed when they are suddenly forced to follow public Quirk use laws, likely finding their way to the MLA proper."
A hollow silence fills the room, the implications settling.
"Young Midoriya," Yagi breathes.
Fuck.
Yagi's right. A Quirkless child with dreams of heroism surrounded by a Quirk Supremist Cult? Shouta sighs, retroactively impressed Midoriya managed as well as he had.
"How many?" asks Hizashi. Nedzu grimaces.
"Based on what I could find tracing financial records? 40,000. Perhaps more."
Fuck.
Shouta runs a hand through his hair. Next to him, Hizashi's clenching his fists tight enough that his knuckles are completely white. Yagi coughs blood. Kayama looks sick, and Kan isn't far behind her.
"Were this a few years ago, I would offer to dismantle this Yotsubashi's insurrection myself," Yagi says. "But I cannot say in confidence that three hours is enough time."
"Three hours is plenty." Nedzu smiles. Sometimes, Shouta forgets that Nedzu is not only an animal, but an animal who has experienced some of the worst humanity has to offer. This smile reminds him. "After all, we only need to worry about Yotsubashi himself. His army isn't our problem."
"Excuse me?" Kan voiced.
"We are heroes, Kan, not soldiers. We do not fight in wars," Nedzu responds, his grin widening. "We have a perfectly good military for that."
When Nedzu presented his case to the government, he almost immediately received support from the Ministry of Intelligence to identify MLA members, a task he took to with gusto. Names, addresses, ages, blood type, Nedzu found as much as he could on as many operatives as he could find.
The operation was straightforward enough. Strike teams, with two Heroes as backup as a precaution, would strike at Meta Liberation Army sympathizers across Japan in preparation for a final raid on Yotsubashi himself.
Nemuri stands next to Kan, both in costume. Across the street, the Japanese military ambushes a small pack of MLA forces attempting to reach the airport on foot.
"Nedzu was right. They didn't even need us," Kan laughs, watching the soldiers subdue the last of the Meta Liberation Soldiers as they attempted to flee down the street.
"Probably for the best that way. Heroes are public servants. Using us in armed conflict would set a dangerous precedent," Nemuri replies. That might be an interesting topic of discussion for my Art History classes.
"True enough." Kan turns. "I just hope everything goes this smoothly—" He's interrupted when a small figure stumbles out of the alleyway behind them. Nemuri and Kan ready themselves. She's young, Nemuri notices first. Her hair is disheveled, her eyes unfocused, her steps uneven. She teeters.
"Blood man," she murmurs, barely audible. Next to her, Nemuri sees Kan's eyes widen.
"Midnight," he uses her Hero Name, something is happening. "Use your Quirk." If the command came from a Hero who wasn't her coworker, Nemuri might have questioned it. But she knew Kan. She steps forward, ignoring the whispered "pretty lady" from the girl and lets her Quirk flow from her palm. The girl's unfocused eyes glaze over, and she slumps into Nemuri's arms. She can tell the girl is too light.
"Who is she?" she turns to her coworker. Kan looks troubled.
"Not MLA. I'll give you the details at the hospital." He turns to the soldiers, who are loading the MLA into an armored car. "Can you guys finish up here?"
Re-Destro straightens his jacket. Over the past 48 hours, his Meta Liberation Army has been besieged. And for the life of him, he has no idea who is responsible. MLA Cells around Japan suddenly went dark. Reports from his supporters in executive positions stopped. Some of his more high-profile allies dropped off the map. His Pro-Hero supporters had been called away by the HPSC, then vanished. Someone had hit him hard and they hit him fast. Anyone sent to investigate never returned. Even Tomoyasu had vanished when he insisted on locating Hanabata.
Too subtle for the Yakuza. Too quiet for the Heroes. Too large-scale for a villain organization to go undetected. Government?
"Kizuki, what's our status?" he asks. Of his top brass, only he and Kizuki remained. The two of them had gone to ground at the Central Tower of Deika City, along with 5,000 soldiers. They were now one of a handful of Meta Liberation Army forces he could account for.
"We lost communications with another cell, the Hosu branch. No response since." She bites her thumb. "What could possibly be happening out there?"
"What indeed," Re-Destro mutters. The thought that his dear comrades may be lost brings tears to his eye.
A shrill alarm blares throughout the tower. His soldiers whirl, looking to identify the source of the commotion.
"Sir!" Kizuki calls, leaning close at her computer screen, "We have visual!"
"Who is it?"
"It's…" Kizuki's blue skin pales. "It's the Japanese Military… and with them is Endeavor and All Might."
Oh.
Enji scoffs, backhanding another so-called Meta Liberation Soldier. He had been called out to deal with this rabble? Shouto could easily have handled a force this pathetic. Another group charges out from the Central Tower. Most of them fall to the soldier's gunfire. Allegedly, the guns weren't lethal; some prototype being developed as riot equipment. In practice, these whelps were being used as live-fire test dummies. He doesn't particularly care. He never saw the point of letting a villain live to strike again. Another way he did a better job than that blonde oaf beside him.
"Take care of the fodder," he barks to All Might. "I'll push through and take Yotsubashi."
"Endeavor, wait!" the almighty idiot bellows, but Enji ignores him. He runs ahead, wreathing his right hand in flames. Once he's close enough to the approaching force, he slams his fist into the ground.
"Raging Assault—Hell Minefield!" The ground erupts from underneath the Meta Liberation Soldiers. He smirks. With no time to evade, the enemies fly backwards from the blast.
His opening created, Enji rushes forward, slamming a burning fist against the occasional enemy. Soon, he finds himself at the base of the Central Tower. Standing just outside is his target, Yotsubashi Rikiya. The CEO glares at Enji, but he refuses to be cowed by a mere insect.
"It's time I show that fool what a real Hero looks like," Enji says, sliding into a battle stance.
"With your defeat, I begin the Liberation of Japan." Yotsubashi strides forward, loosening his tie. Enji shifts his weight, concentrating the flames on his hand.
"Flashfire Fist—Jet Burn!" He punches forward, a burst of heat blasting forward and engulfing Yotsubashi. Enji keeps the fire going. Underestimating the leader of the revived Meta Liberation Army could get him killed. The seconds tick by, the roaring heat in front of him pressing his limits. Enji pants. Forcing a super move so far immediately after using his Hell Minefield pushed him further than he'd expected. No matter. He'd already won. The flames flicker and die, and Enji grins, expecting to see the downed form of his opponent.
Instead, he sees a monster.
A black, hulking figure looking down his nose at him.
"80% Liberation. This is 80% of my stress made into physical power, Endeavor. Isn't it glorious? This is my Meta Ability!" The monster swipes an arm at Enji, and he barely pulls himself out of the way. Physical force isn't going to slow this thing down. He launches dozens of small fire blasts at the transformed Yotsubashi. The muscle-bound man winces and the fire burns through his clothes, but Enji can tell the man's Quirk hasn't increased only his offense. Probably resists just about everything like that. Damn!
Enji ignites his flames again, but before he can react, a wave of flashing black overwhelms him. "Stress Output Burden!"
The wave smashes into Enji, launching him back.
He slams into the ground and bounces, rolling further and further away. His careening body smashes straight through wall after wall. He tries to use his fire as propulsion to stop himself, but as out of control as he is, it takes his all just to slow down.
Finally, he tumbles to a stop against a wall, deep inside some office building. Enji struggles, pushing himself to his feet. but his body refuses, and he collapses once more. The last thing he sees before fading to black is the rebar sticking through his side.
Izuku stares at the television, dumbstruck. His mother, sitting on the couch beside him, pulls him close with a hiccupping sob. A news helicopter flies over Deika City, broadcasting live footage of the battle raging. A reporter's voiceover narrates the video.
"It's been ten minutes since All Might and Endeavor arrived in Deika City backed by the Japanese Military. There is still no word as to what led the military to call in Hero reinforcements, but we have confirmed reports that over the past two days, Japanese military forces have launched raids on locations around Japan." On screen, about a dozen people rush out of the tower at the heart of Deika, followed by a dozen more, charging straight towards the Heroes and soldiers. The newscaster tries to remain neutral as she watches the newcomers unleash their Quirks against the joint forces, but when the soldiers return fire she breaks. "-and the soldiers are responding with… Oh, oh God…" she trails off as the tower's defenders fall. Endeavor abandons his military escort and All Might, charging through the crowd to where—
"Isn't that the CEO of that lifestyle support company?" his mother asks. Izuku nods, recognizing him from commercials.
"Detnerat."
Endeavor's Flashfire Fist does absolutely nothing as the spindly suited man swells and grows with muscle.
And Izuku watches, horrified, as he somehow blasts Endeavor through two city blocks, a burning trail in his wake.
Chapter 10: The Final Act/The Curtain Rises
Toshinori smacks another goon into a wall, eyeing him long enough to know he won't get back up. The ground rumbles, and he looks up in time to see a massive wave of black energy send Endeavor flying. From the corner of his eye, Toshinori sees the soldiers faltering behind him. There's a perfect pause, a moment of calm on the battlefield as everyone gawks. Then a cheer carries on the wind from the Meta Liberation forces.
"Friends and comrades!" The crowd cheers again, and Toshinori knows the voice. It's been featured in commercials for years now.
"Yotsubashi," Toshinori snarls. Forward steps a giant, bound in dark muscle. Toshinori can barely recognize the man he is here to defeat.
"We are on the backfoot now, yes. But now, your Grand Commander Re-Destro has taken to the field himself! Do not lose heart, for this is the era of the Meta Liberation Army! In the name of my father and his ideals. Our true freedom is at hand!"
"Not so!" Toshinori roars. "Your freedom comes at the price of millions of children around Japan, discarded and destroyed because they have no value to your philosophy!" He still sees Young Midoriya wailing on a rooftop whenever he closes his eyes. Toshinori takes a step forward, bustling with energy.
"What would you know about that?" Yotsubashi snarls.
"Have you not heard of Aldera, fiend?" All Might calls. Yotsubashi's giant form stiffens. "You claim to be for the freedom of Quirks, and yet your followers allowed, no, encouraged the abuse of a child because he wasn't born to your standards! Your creed is nothing more than an excuse to further your own power! No child will ever be hurt that way again!" The fact an entire school district neglected their duty of care in favor of this man fills Toshinori with incandescent rage. He takes another step, and the Meta Liberation Soldiers step back. "The tyranny of your so called 'true-freedom' will never come to pass! Why?" Toshinori launches himself forward, rearing back his fist as the goons between the two titans scramble out of the way.
"Because I am here!"
Izuku can't look away, can't even blink as on the television in front of him All Might trades blows with a towering mass of muscle. Does he have enough time? Izuku swallows. All of Japan is watching, but only he knows about that wound that's steadily draining All Might's strength.
"Come on, All Might," he mumbles.
"I—I'll make tea," his mother declares, slipping off the couch and into the kitchen.
The television in the hospital lobby plays the news, and Nemuri is captivated. In her time as a Pro Hero, she has never seen a villain who could meet All Might punch for punch. The battle that gave him that injury on his side, was it like this? She doesn't even notice Kan come up behind her until he places a hand on her shoulder.
"Our new coworker's really giving it his all," he says quietly. Nemuri can only nod.
Deep underground, a man with no eyes listens as his doctor watches the news.
"It's been a long time since One For All has fought against an organized front," he muses. "It's almost nostalgic for the battles he waged against my allies in the years leading up to our duel."
"Maybe he'll take a blow to the other side," his doctor suggests. "Symmetry and all that." All For One laughs at the imagery.
Katsuki scowls. The reporter, the extras on the field, even his parents are acting like this is some big deal. Yeah, Big Nose down there has some raw strength, but All Might is the Best. Until I surpass him. All Might would never lose to an extra like that. This fight is just a way to showcase how damn strong Katsuki is gonna be someday. At least he will enjoy watching the villain getting smashed into next week.
Nedzu sits in his office, counting the seconds, as the news plays on his computer. Since All Might assumed his muscle form and joined the operation, Six-thousand and eighty seconds have passed. He's just over his halfway point. Defeating Yotsubashi in time won't be an issue, but will he have enough time for the cleanup? He'll have to call Yagi after the battle and remind him not to go overboard. They both know the Wild Wild Pussycats are on standby for once the fighting is over. Yagi can leave things to them.
But will he? That man can be too stubborn for his own good.
He sips his tea.
Punch for punch, hit for hit, blow for blow, Yotsubashi is there. Their fists collide with every strike, shockwaves radiating from the two combatants.
"You would truly go so far for one Quirkless?" Yotsubashi howls over the clashing.
"Always."
"I'm sick of watching Heroes like you be praised for your Meta Abilities when my Army is ostracized for the same!" Yotsubashi screams, his form increasing still. "Stress: 100%!" The man's blows come down harder and harder, and Toshinori puts everything he has into intercepting them. Each strike forces him back, his feet sinking through the street. The shock reverberates through his bones. Toshinori grits his teeth, smacking another punch away. Yotsubashi sneers, clutching both fists together and bringing them down on Toshinori's back. He coughs out spittle, barely blocking the follow-up hit to the chest. Toshinori flies back a good five meters, skidding against the ground.
"You called this 'Stress: 100%,' correct?" Toshinori says. "This is you at your strongest then?"
"It is indeed! Behold, the full might of the Meta Liberation Army's Grand Commander!"
"So that punch just now…" Toshinori surreptitiously wipes the blood from his chin, "That was the best you have?" Toshinori glares, signature grin unwavering. Yotsubashi gawks, instinctively taking a step back. Seeing his moment, Toshinori charges once more, landing a clean hit into Yotsubashi's side. The Grand Commander howls but braces himself before he can be knocked back. Toshinori swings a left hook, but Yotsubashi is already moving to block it. Once more, they are matched blow for blow.
Black energy swirls up from both of Yotsubashi's oversized fists and Toshinori recognizes the attack that launched Endeavor. He's planning on ending this in the next hit!
"Stress Output Burden!" Yotsubashi yells, swinging his arms forward in a wide arc, the black energy trailing. My opening!
"Texas Smash!" Toshinori surges a right hook straight into Yotsubashi's stomach. Wind roars out, through Yotsubashi and beyond into the Deika Central Tower. The twin black waves erupt out in a V shape, leveling building after building. Skyscrapers fall like chopped trees. Smoke, dust, and debris fog the streets.
The silence is heard across Japan.
Slowly, the breeze lifts the clouds of dirt.
Yotsubashi Rikiya is pressed into a crater in the wall of the Deika Central Tower. Slowly, he slips, and falls to the ground.
Unconscious.
And All Might is still standing.
He raises a single fist and laughs, the sound echoing across Deika City. The soldiers raise their guns and cheer. The Meta Liberation Forces—those that are still standing, that is—see their leader defeated and turn tail. Toshinori lets them. After all, there are only so many ways in and out of Deika. Their own defenses now trap them.
"Re-Destro! How dare you hurt him!" Toshinori whirls in time to see a blue-skinned woman fling dozens of graveled rocks at him. He exerted himself more than he would have liked against Yotsubashi. If he dodges, he could lower his time limit again. Caught unaware as he was, amateur mistake, Toshinori, he can't deflect in time. Does he risk the damage?
To Toshinori, it's as though everything slows to a crawl. The flying rocks expand, glowing white-hot with heat. Exploding. If he moves, they could go behind him and hit the soldiers, but if he takes it the damage will be extensive. I should have moved sooner! I can't stop them in time!
Then, red beams rush past Toshinori from off to his side, enveloping the detonating rocks and beyond. The beams dance, expand, and dissipate, leaving no trace of the attack as Deika Central Tower crumples into countless burning pieces. The blue skinned MLA member sinks to her knees, and Toshinori sees smoking burnt lines on her skin. Those beams kissed her but deliberately avoided killing her.
"All Might you idiot," Endeavor pants, limping towards him, a raised hand still smoking from his Hell Spider, other hand over where a reinforced metal bar pierces his side. "Never let your guard down on the battlefield!"
"Endeavor!" Toshinori dashes over to him, offering a shoulder to support him. "Should you be moving like that?" He doesn't expect Endeavor to accept—Toshinori knows the man is far too proud—but the Flame Hero relents, slinging an arm over All Might's neck. Soldiers rush past to apprehend the blue-skinned woman and any MLA fighters still moving.
"Hmph. That wave attack of his wasn't enough to really hurt me, but it blasted me back a fair bit. He got lucky I hit this rebar, or I'd have been up again in a second." Toshinori gives a relieved sigh. Endeavor is obsessed with strength, but he isn't stupid enough to fight past serious injury unless necessary. And he knows not to undersell damage to healers. Dead men rarely place high on the Hero Billboard Chart. If he says he's alright, Toshinori believes him.
Toshinori gives one last look at the ruins of Deika City.
The grave of Destro's ideals.
The Meta Liberation Army is no more.
As Toshinori helps Endeavor to the medical evac point, Nedzu's voice pipes up in his earpiece.
"Excellent work, Yagi. Remember, there are other Heroes who can help with the evacuation. You still have just over an hour of time. Be careful with how much of it you use." Toshinori can't see Nedzu's grin, but he knows it's there. "You'll likely be called for the press statement on what happened out there. You should rest while you can."
Toshinori groans.
Izuku sips his tea carefully, his hands trembling. His mother pulls him into a hug, and he leans into it.
"He did that for me, mom," he whispers.
"He did. You're worth saving."
Izuku cries.
Chapter 11: The Cracked Reflection/A Fresh Start
Press Conferences and news releases are definitely Toshinori's least favorite parts of the job. His entire Hero persona is based around the old adage: actions speak louder than words. He leaps around the city, defeats the villains, saves the people, retrieves the cat from the tree or what-have-you, and leads away again, all with his signature smile. His presence makes people feel safer. He's inspiring, and hope-inducing. He is the Symbol of Peace. He is supposed to be out there, reassuring the public with just a passing glance of his trademark red, white, blue, and gold costume.
Instead, he is sitting in a folding chair at a cloth-covered table, wearing a suit, waiting for the reporters to take their seats. Nedzu expertly announced before the Media could begin wild speculation that All Might and himself would be discussing the Deika City battle of several hours ago at the UA Conference Center.
He understands. The Deika City battle was the first time that Heroes had officially worked alongside the Japanese military. The Heroics Public Safety Commission had made it very clear early in its inception that Heroes were public servants, not soldiers. Technically, Heroes couldn't even make arrests, merely detain villains for the police.
For him, the Number One Hero, the Symbol of Peace, to stand side by side with a platoon of soldiers? It was bound to turn some heads.
"I will discuss the investigation into Aldera and how we uncovered the connection between the so-called 'school district' with the revived Meta Liberation Army," Nedzu says from the chair to his left. "You focus on damage control for being involved in a military operation. Would you like any last-minute pointers?"
"No thank you," Toshinori shakes his head. "I have a pretty good idea already of what I want to say." He coughs blood into his hand. He's glad Nedzu reminded him that this was coming. He still has about forty-five minutes left, but if the principal hadn't called him after the battle Toshinori is sure he would've used it pulling people out of the rubble. "I will be sure to emphasize the uniqueness of this situation."
Soon after, the microphones are on and the cameras are rolling. Nedzu pulls his mounted mic closer.
"As I have stated, this conference is to discuss the events broadcast earlier today. Specifically, the Japanese military employing All Might and Endeavor in a combat zone, as well as the nature of the threat they faced." Nedzu pauses. "I believe, in this case, it makes the most sense to begin from the end. Yotsubashi Rikiya, CEO of the Detnerat Company, is in fact secretly the Grand Commander of a new Meta Liberation Army." Predictably, the assembled members of the press explode, demanding answers. After a few seconds, Nedzu taps the mic, silencing them. "As you are well aware, the original Meta Liberation Army, led by Destro, engaged the Japanese Government in armed conflict before their ultimate defeat. As such, we could not treat the new MLA as a simple villain organization, and so we contacted the military." Toshinori sees his cue and takes it.
"As Nedzu said, Yotsubashi could not be treated as any ordinary villain. During our briefing, it was speculated that his forces numbered above 40,000 people." Toshinori lets that sink in. "Personally, I am uncomfortable with Heroes and military being deployed as though we are the same. I do not wish to see villains apprehended by soldiers any more than you. However, Heroes alone could not face the threat presented by the new MLA alone. Especially when we uncovered several Pro Heroes had ties to their group. As such, the official statement of the HPSC is this: 'Heroes can be employed in military operations as support only if it is known that an enemy combatant would be classified as a Villain were it not for their supporters, forces, or resources necessitating the involvement of the military. Heroes cannot be deployed beyond the borders of Japan in military operations, even if the above condition is met.'"
"I would like to add that the HPSC are aware of the precedent that could be set by allowing Heroes into combat zones, and they assure me they will personally look over any future incident to determine whether Hero involvement is necessary," Nedzu says.
Nedzu talks some more about the legislation being drafted no doubt at that very moment to ensure the military would be unable to abuse Hero involvement. Toshinori speaks more about the philosophy of using Heroes in military operations. Eventually, they begin taking questions from the press.
"How did you discover Yotsubashi's connection to the MLA?" one asks.
"I am sure you are familiar with the incredibly recent Aldera scandal," Nedzu begins. "As one of the investigators on that case, I sought to ensure that each and every person involved be brought to justice. As such, I performed a background check of the legal defense of the district faculty. Strangely, every one of the faculty had a legal defense from the same firm. Even more peculiar is that the Aldera district previously made use of a different legal firm entirely. Attempting to determine the reason, I dug deeper into both these firms and uncovered financial records demonstrably proving the revival of the Meta Liberation Army. Both firms have, of course, since been arrested."
"Are you saying that the Aldera schools were part of the MLA?"
"I am."
The reporters explode once more. Toshinori silences them and explains that since his part of this conference is over, he will be leaving the rest to Nedzu. He's running short on time for the day, which he knows Nedzu knows.
He also knows Nedzu will find a way to get back at him for leaving him to answer the press alone, even if Toshinori was not involved in the Aldera case.
Three weeks into his third and final year at Junior High and the place is shut down because his teachers are all apparently insurrectionists. Izuku stares at the wall above the television, numb. Everything he's ever been through. It was all because his teachers were part of an extremist Quirk Supremist group? Being born Quirkless wasn't bad enough luck, he had to live by the one school district in Japan being run by terrorists. Perfect.
Well, probably the only one. I know the Ministry of Education wants to double check. Just to be sure.
Now, Izuku is just floating. His whole life, apparently, was an elaborate lie. Propaganda. His first, best friend betrayed him, made his life a living hell for ten years because the Meta Liberation Army wanted to promote some idiotic, Social Darwinist bullshit.
His mother places a cup of tea on the table in front of him, bless her.
"I'm—" she starts, and Izuku already sees tears in her eyes. "What happened to you—what your classmates and teachers did. That wasn't your fault, Izuku. You did nothing wrong. I'm sorry you suffered in silence for so long." He pulls her in to a hug.
"I love you, mom."
"I love you too, Sunshine."
"And—and mom?"
"Mm?"
"I'm going to be a Hero."
"I know, Sunshine."
A cult school.
A fucking cult school.
Katsuki had been attending a cult school his entire life. The bastards! He knew his teachers were ass-kissers, but he thought they all sucked up to him because they knew he was gonna be the Best one day. Not because they wanted him to play second fiddle to their shitty cult leader. They never thought I could be the best. They wanted me as Number 2 to that big-nosed fuck!
"Damn it!" he restrains himself to small pops instead of the roaring blasts he wants to let out. His parents could afford to replace anything he burnt, but he'd rather they didn't have another excuse to look disappointed at him.
So what he hurt Deku? The bastard didn't know his place: under Katsuki's heel.
Arrogant prick, meeting up with Heroes behind Katsuki's back and not telling him. Laughing behind his back. So what if he hurt him? The little shit kept going on about being a Hero. If he was serious, he should be able to take at least this much.
Katsuki scoffs. Of course Deku wasn't serious.
He just said that to look down on him. Saying he didn't need a Quirk to do what Katsuki could.
Couldn't take the heat so he whined until they shut down the fucking school. How pathetic.
(He ignores the memory of Aunty Inko looking at him with such coldness in her eyes the evening Aldera closed.)
(He ignores the memory of how his mother, a loud, boisterous woman, sobbed quietly when Aunty Inko told her what he'd done, and he didn't deny it.)
(He ignores the memory of his gentle father trembling in anger.)
Katsuki takes a deep breath. Deku doesn't matter. Once he gets into UA, he'll never see the bastard again.
After all, those cult bastards were right about onething.
Bakugou Katsuki was going to be the Best.
"Such a shame," the doctor says, turning off the television. "They had a rather sizable force we could've used. And they didn't even kill most of them. At least if they were dead, I could use their corpses as Noumu bases."
"Indeed, we have lost quite a powerful potential ally," All For One says. "But fret not. Not all of Yotsubashi's forces were lost. They have gone to ground now, but If we are patient, I am sure they will come to us. Shigaraki is in need of quality supporters." Behind his respirator, All For One grins ear to ear. "And besides, Endeavor was just humiliated live on national television. Perhaps if we are lucky, his wounded pride and ambition will drive him to further our goals on his own."
"That fight reminded me," Toshinori starts, "that I need to be preparing a successor soon." Nedzu looks up from his tea. The two of them are alone in his office, some time after the conference ended.
"You struggled that much?" he says. "You hid it well." Toshinori shakes his head.
"It wasn't Yotsubashi. It was that woman. In my prime, that attack of hers would have been nothing to me. Today it could have killed me." He meets the Principal's eyes. "I need to offer One For All to Young Midoriya." Nedzu sips his tea slowly, then pauses, slowly rotating the cup.
"Not just yet, Yagi," he says. "Midoriya has just learned that his entire life was a carefully constructed lie. Give him time to process." Toshinori slumps, sighing. Nedzu is right, of course.
"I'll give him until June, then."