Phone Numbers

He couldn't deny it was a nice sum of money. With the lizard's share in addition to his, he just got 150 million yen in total. It was the highest amount of money he ever earned until now, so leaving that place was a waste of income. However, it would be an even bigger waste to stay there.

Sure, he loved fighting and getting his heart pumping, but he wouldn't get any excitement by getting rid of weaklings. He also mainly wanted to find suitable recruits for what he planned to do. It wasn't something he would come across at that place. With the time spent there, he could safely say there would be no surprises for him at the Fight Club. When you wanted to change society, no, the whole world, you couldn't simply take weak bums under you.

The cannon fodder came after finding your officers. He didn't even need to have people who thought like him, all he needed from them was to be strong and loyal. The phone number Pero had given him for that information broker was a good opportunity to find soldiers from the underworld. The second opportunity for recruitment would be… U.A. Anyone else would be foolish to think they could simply enter this school and convince any of the students to fight against the government, but Izuku was not anyone else. He knew the true nature of people, and he was certain there were no saints in this world. Not in hero schools, at least.

Greed and corruption were everywhere. Everyone had something they would yield to what they considered evil. Besides, his future companions' origins wouldn't matter much considering that heroes and villains would be a thing of the past once his plans would succeed. Brute force wouldn't work for everything. Fortunately, he also had a strong mind.

He would find the weaknesses that would bring them over to his side, if they had any potential, of course. Now that he thought about it, analyses could be a good way to earn some pocket money until he found something better. That information broker could probably use some of the analyses he had done on several pro-heroes. He had quite a few of them stored in files on his computer at home.

Speaking of home, it may be time to go back. The school day would end soon since he spent a few hours at the Fight Club, especially since it was far from his house. His mother likely knew he was skipping classes, honestly, but she didn't care much when he brought good grades home. Glancing around, he noticed he was currently on a large and busy street.

There was nothing unusual, but he did see there was a pro-hero nearby. It was a woman with a purple and white skintight bodysuit and a purple domino mask with horns. She was about the height of a regular teen, too. Obviously, he immediately recognized her.

"Mt. Lady… Right, I saw her debut this morning," He muttered to himself. He remembered that one of the reasons he was late was that he watched Kamui Woods and her fight against that villain.

She was one of the heroes he thought of earlier when speaking of weaknesses. Greed and vanity were written all over her face this morning. If there were any students like her in U.A., they would be his prime targets. It was a shame she was already a pro since someone with a giantification quirk would have been useful.

The heroine was standing at a stand that was selling hot dogs. It seemed she was using her feminine charms to get a discount from what Izuku could see by her body language.

Izuku scoffed. Maybe once he possessed more assets and resources, he would come to her with an offer. He hoped for her that she would accept when that happened. However, for now, he still had somewhere else to be.

As the horned boy stepped on a manhole cover and slowly walked away, green sludge hesitantly slipped out. A pair of eyes peeked around with panic.

"Shit, there are a ton of people around! There's no way I can sneak away here! Why did that bastard have to chase me?" The sludge complained with mumbles while still looking around. "Maybe if I could find someone with a nice quirk…" He grunted until his eyes finally settled on a large green-haired boy. "Oh! That guy's huge! He's gotta have a strong quirk! All Might doesn't stand a chance, hehe," He sniggered before quickly slipping out of the manhole and dashing toward the boy.

As if he had sensed the upcoming attack, Izuku dropped one of the briefcases and turned around, throwing his punch toward the living sludge.

"Sneak attacks don't work on me…" He clicked his tongue in annoyance, only to see his arm penetrating the sludge without doing any damage. The horned boy widened his eyes in surprise as the sludge laughed, attracting the attention of everyone around them.

"I'm a liquid, you idiot! A punch isn't gonna do anything! Now let me borrow your body!" He laughed before wrapping around the long-haired boy.

"A-A villain!" One of the bystanders shouted, alerting the ones who remained unaware. Predictably, most civilians swiftly fled the scene while Izuku attempted to get the villain off of him.

Unfortunately, as the sludge had said, he was liquid. Even his big hands weren't enough to pull the villain away since he immediately reformed and moved around his body.

"This is getting annoying!" Izuku complained, dropping his other briefcase, which only increased his ire. Taking advantage of his open mouth, the sludge villain quickly went for it, trying to get his body inside his victim's.

"Don't worry! I'm coming!" Mount Lady assured confidently the moment she noticed the commotion. "Please make some room!" She instructed the civilians around before growing in size until she was at least 20 meters tall. "Two villains in one day is gonna boost my ratings!" She exclaimed happily. Of course, she was also worried about the civilian who was caught, but she couldn't deny the rating boost was a nice bonus.

"Shit! Just my luck! Another pro-hero! Just let me in, so I can get rid of her!" The sludge villain shouted while choking the massive boy.

That was enough. Izuku had given him enough chances. He didn't want to use his quirk since he wanted to avoid having problems with the law right now. However, he wasn't about to let such a pathetic villain take his life, not that the sludge could anyway. He simply didn't want to waste his time with such annoyances. Heat began building up in his belly, slowly warming up his body, which the villain didn't notice at all.

"Blast Breath!" Izuku roared as he breathed a strong stream of fire in the air, burning all the sludge inside his mouth and surrounding his face.

"Wah!" Mount Lady stepped back in surprise, startled as the beam narrowly missed her.

The sludge villain, on the other hand, screamed in pain as a large part of his body was burned away. His reflex was immediately to let go of his hostage, who hadn't seemed done with him since the moment Izuku extinguished his fire, he threw a powerful fist into the villain's eye and made him howl in pain. His punch was strong enough to make the sludge villain burst into multiple pieces.

"That'll teach you to attack me," Izuku cracked his neck. Since the villain wasn't reforming, he was either dead or unconscious, but the green-haired boy doubted he killed him.

"Hey! I understand you were attacked, sir, but using a quirk without a license is…" Mount Lady began reprimanding him while shrinking, only to realize what he was wearing. "You're a middle schooler?!" She asked in shock while looking up.

"Huh? Yeah, I am. What's the issue?" He inquired as he bent over to pick up one of the briefcases, then noticed the second one was a bit further away.

"You look like a thirty-year-old man! And firstly, you should button your jacket," Mount Lady pointed out before walking over to the second briefcase to help him get his stuff. "Secondly, you shouldn't use your quirk without a license, that's vigilantism. But I guess I can be a little lax considering the situation," She explained as she widened her eyes once faced with the case, which was slightly open because of the drop. She could clearly see there was quite an amount of money inside.

"I was just defending myself," Izuku simply stated as he hurriedly grabbed the second briefcase before the pro hero could take another look.

Mount Lady smirked as if she just hit the jackpot. The way the horned boy didn't seem to care about the rules as if he could get away with anything, added to the sum of money he carried painted a clear picture in her mind. He was a rich kid! At first, she was only going to let him go with a slap on the wrist, and then take the villain into custody, but this changed things a bit… It looked like he had a strong quirk, too.

"Be that as it may, I still have to take you with me and this villain to the nearest police station. They have to write a report on this," She explained, trying her hardest to lace her tone with authority.

"I don't have time for this," Izuku scoffed before attempting to depart, only for the woman to stand in front of him. The sight was almost comical, of course, because you wouldn't think she would even try it with the size difference.

"Oh, really? Are you busy going back to school? Because as far as I know, middle schoolers shouldn't be out for another hour, at least," She snidely remarked, swiftly getting on the boy's nerves.

It was obvious by now that she wouldn't let him go this easily. Considering the change in her demeanor, he already had an idea why, and that was his fault for being reckless with the money. Obviously, he didn't consider fighting her, but he still replayed in his mind what he learned about her this morning. It took her about 2 seconds to grow to her full gigantic size. Moreover, from what he saw earlier, she was the same size as this morning, which meant she was either in full giant mode or her normal size, there was no in-between. Getting her inside a building, even one with a high ceiling would be enough to reduce her chances of victory nearly to zero since she wouldn't have enough room to use her quirk.

"Alright," Izuku sighed. He would rather avoid any further issues, so it was better to submit to her for now.

"As I was saying, what you did was illegal. However, I think we can come up with an arrangement that would benefit both of us. Obviously, you probably don't want to go to the police station, otherwise, Mommy would get mad," She snickered in a slightly mocking tone. She was clearly not taking him seriously because of his age, which completely overshadowed his huge size.

"Just get on with it," He mumbled in annoyance.

"I'd rather not have to make a longer report, too. So what about this: you can pay a fine now, and you won't be mentioned to the police. Does that work for you?" Mount Lady suggested with her arms crossed under her chest. Since it happened so fast, no one recorded Izuku's actions, so they would indeed be covered up completely if he paid her now. "I'm sure you wouldn't mind doing it for little old me?" She added seductively, trying to use her charms.

Of course, she was extorting him. That was predictable. It was something his old man would regularly do, too. Although in her case she was also trying to seduction against him, it wouldn't work. Not because he felt no attraction, but because his desire to crush her to death overpowered his lust. She was trying to take the money he earned himself! What did you expect?!

"I would rather hurry home, so here, take this, and don't bother me anymore," He grumbled before taking a few bundles of bills and giving them to her. There were around 200,000 yen, which seemed to greatly please her as she greedily snatched them out of his hand.

"Oh, yeah, that'll definitely cover the fine! It could have been more if you hadn't used your quirk just once, so you should count yourself lucky," Mount Lady stated while counting the bills.

"Great, then I'll leave if this is over with," Izuku scoffed before trying to walk away, only for Mount Lady to step in front of him again.

"Wait a second!"

"What now?" The horned boy asked with growing impatience.

"What are your plans for the future? Do you want to be a hero? Your quirk is strong and flashy,"

"Yeah, I'm planning to enter U.A," Izuku revealed, seeing no point in hiding that fact.

"I knew it! You just got that heroic energy!" The blonde exclaimed, which was a blatant lie in Izuku's opinion since he could smell she had something else to gain here. The heroine walked over to a woman with a purse and asked for a pen and something to write on. "If you ever need an internship or want to become someone's sidekick, call my agency," She winked as she handed him a small piece of paper. "It recently opened, but it's probably going to be one of the best by the time you graduate, so you should bet carefully,"

As expected, it was a phone number. Huh. That was the second one he got today. Well, he would keep it just in case, it would be useful. After all, she wasn't completely wrong. She had a decent quirk, and charms, so she would quickly gain popularity.

"Thanks," Izuku mumbled before walking away, leaving the blonde behind. He made sure to remember to make her pay for this one day.

"He's definitely got some potential," She commented to herself before rubbing the back of her neck with a wince. "But geez, looking up for so long actually hurt my neck,"

"O-Oh! You're the pro-hero who made her debut today! Please sign me an autograph!" Someone suddenly shouted as they approached, encouraging more people to swarm her.

It took some time, but they ended up recognizing her eventually. Even heroes who just debuted would be signing autographs because some people hoped they would rise in rankings so that their signatures would be worth a lot.

"Me too, Mount Lady!"

"Now, wait a minute! I still have a villain to take into custody," She raised her hands defensively. The only problem now was that she had no idea how to even take into custody a bunch of sludge.

While she was busy with hero fans, a thin arm popped out of the manhole. The man whom it belonged to slowly pulled himself up, getting out of the sewers with heavy breaths.

"Those sewers are so hard to navigate… Huff… It made me lose all the time I had for the day… Now, where is that villain?" The man spoke to himself before looking around. He didn't need to look for long since the sludge wasn't far away. In fact, it was just here, and here, and here… and here… It was a bit everywhere, actually. "A hero must have defeated him already," He remarked as he finally noticed the heroine. He clicked his tongue and shook his head. "I understand being swarmed by fans, but locking up the evildoer should be a top priority," He lectured as he took out two empty bottles from his pockets.

Still, he was grateful another pro-hero was on the scene. Who knows what would have happened if this guy hadn't been caught. He could have gotten a hostage. He didn't wish to have this on his conscience because he used up all his time.

It didn't take much longer for Izuku to reach his home, which changed a lot over the years. After Hisashi's death, they were forced to move into a small apartment, which quickly became too tiny for someone like Izuku who was only growing bigger and bigger. Thanks to his size, which was considered a handicap, they received several benefits, so they could have a larger home. Naturally, the horned boy also brought some money lately with his fights in the underground fight club.

Thanks to these factors, they now had a modest house, with ceilings barely high enough for Izuku to stand inside. However, it was an acceptable abode for now.

When he came in, his mother was in the kitchen, which was visible from the living room, cutting up vegetables with a kitchen knife.

"Is that you, Izuku?" She called out to him without turning around.

"Yeah," He answered as he put his briefcases on the table, not even bothering to hide them. "What are you doing?" He asked as his mother put the cut vegetables in a bowl before coming to meet him.

"Preparing dinner for tonight," She responded, showing her face.

The green-haired woman hadn't changed much during all these past years. She was tall and slim, looking like she regularly exercised to keep her shape. Her long hair was tied in a ponytail just as usual, and she wore a yellow cardigan with a green skirt. However, there were major differences. While her eyes held a joyful light when Izuku was born, now they seemed exhausted and on the brink of giving up. She was fired recently and had been overworking for years. The reason was the other major difference: her leg.

The leg she lost below the knee had been replaced by a prosthetic that was… a bit primitive, but they couldn't afford anything better. Most of it was just a metallic stick with a foot on the end. Inko had no choice but to limp most of the time.

"So, how was school?" She asked, only for Izuku to wave in dismissal.

"Eh, the same as every day," He replied before taking one of the briefcases and leaving the second on the table. "Here, take this. It's for you," He stated, then left before she could say another word.

"Oh, thank you," She thanked him as she opened the case, looking at the money with an impassive expression.

She didn't ask him about it. She never asked questions about what he did outside of home or school. It wasn't like Izuku threatened her or anything, she simply decided not to question him. She likely knew it was dirty money, but the horned boy didn't care.

He was perfectly aware that she wouldn't betray him or call the police on him. The reason why she wouldn't betray him was unknown even to him, but he supposed it was because he was her son. It was that simple.

When he finally reached his room, he came in and locked the door behind him. His bed took up most of the space, but the room itself was already big enough so two siblings would be able to live in it together. There were barely any wall decorations except for an All Might poster and two other ones for a rock band called Black Stones.

On the shelves on his walls, there was an All Might figurine, an Endeavor, and a Miruko one. Between all of them also stood a dragon.

There was also a katana on a stand across his bed.

Izuku threw the briefcase on the bed before sitting at his desk, where his computer was. He didn't want to relax just yet since he got an interesting phone number from Pero. He also left the piece of paper with Mount Lady's agency number nearby in case he ever needed it.

He needed to look over his analyses before thinking of selling any of them. After all, if he gave them away, then they would become useless. The reason was simple really. He was aware whoever bought them would use them to kill the heroes the analyses are about, which would ultimately render them useless. Izuku wrote these so he would be able to fight anyone by developing his analytical skills.

He looked at Giran's contact information. He would also need a burner phone now that he thought about it, but this could wait. He tapped the number in, grumbling because of his big fingers and the size of the smartphone before raising it to his ear and holding it with two fingers.

The phone was ringing, which was a good start, but the man wasn't picking up immediately. He was either busy or simply didn't trust an unknown number. However, after several seconds, someone picked up.

"Is this Giran?" Izuku asked before the man on the other hand had the opportunity to talk.

"Who's asking?" A gruff voice replied in apprehension. He was careful, it seemed.

"Someone who wants to do business. I've got something interesting I could sell," Izuku responded while Giran, he presumed, hummed.

"That, I expected. Who gave you my number?" He questioned.

"Pero," Izuku simply answered. He could have given Pero's full name, but if Giran was the real deal, then he should know the man's name.

"Oh! Did you fight in the ring or did you bet?" Giran asked, suddenly growing more trusting.

"I fought, but I don't anymore. That's why I need money," The horned boy explained.

"If Pero gave you my number, then you must have something worthwhile. Alright, I'll hear you out, but we shouldn't talk over the phone. Whatever you want to sell, bring it to me to the address I'll send you," Giran stated as Izuku nodded along. "Will you be alone?"

"Yeah. I hope there will be no surprises," He replied. His tone was light, but the threat hidden behind his tone would be hard to miss.

"Don't worry. I'm a professional. I won't ruin a business relationship before it even started," The man on the other side of the line reassured him.

"Alright, I'll hold you to that," Izuku responded as Giran hung up. Only a few seconds later, the boy received the address through a text. It didn't specify when he should be going to that place, but he sure wasn't going there now. He was still in his middle school uniform, and he wanted to have dinner, too.

First, he changed into a better outfit, which was all black and consisted of an open leather jacket with spikes on the shoulders, leaving his chest bare, and tight leather pants with boots. He also wore spiked bracelets. All in all, he didn't really have the look of a future student in heroics.

After that, he looked up Mount Lady's agency, trying to find the most information possible on it. Of course, all of it was public knowledge, so its usefulness would be limited. It reminded him that he needed an information collector who would work under him. Izuku couldn't exactly sneak around with his massive body. The best way to actually gain some information would be to have an internship there once he entered U.A., but he wouldn't do that. Someone like him deserved a pro-hero in the top 10, at least.

Right before dinner, he looked through some of his files again and picked two of them before transferring them to a USB key. It contained everything he managed to analyze on the heroes Air Jet, and Master Driller. This should be a good start, and Giran would also see he was trustworthy.

Inko didn't have any special reactions after he told her he had to go somewhere that evening. She didn't question him or anything, and he didn't expect her to. All she did was tell him to be careful as he exited the house.

He was always careful, but he had to admit everything was going faster, now. It wasn't the first time he had done something illegal, but he was now ready to fully enter the underground world. Meeting Giran was only the first step.