6

Chapter 6: It's Never Too (Late) Early to Act

Chapter Text

The following days, Izuku spends a lot of time with his mother. It's absolutely wonderful to spend time with her, but there's a strange feeling accompanying him, as if he's walking on eggshells. There's a tension in the air, something he can't explain, but it makes him think something has shifted in their relationship. For the worse.

The officers come by a few more times, and stay for around a half hour each time for small talk and tea. They also visit the hospital for more check-ups, although thankfully they find Izuku's "condition" isn't getting any worse. It is peculiar, they note, that his new bone growth in some places looks to be over a year old...Yeah, truly a mystery.

What's new, however, is the additional visits he has to make to a therapist. Because of their running theory of kidnap and abuse by villains, Izuku has to be evaluated for any "repressed memories" or "underlying trauma". While he may not remember what happened while he was in captivity, his subconscious could still show signs of his mistreatment, they reason. And, if he does get his "real" memories back, a therapist can help deal with the fallout.

Izuku can't exactly tell them all of the reasons that seeing a therapist isn't going to help him, so he goes along with it. It's not bad either. The sessions are ultimately driven by him and what he wants to talk about, so he doesn't feel like he's trapped or being psycho-analyzed. The therapist herself is very nice as well. Her name is Heakarā-san and she's around the same age as his mom. Her quirk is very minor, it can change the color of her hair and Izuku spent most of the first session marveling over it and asking her more questions than she asked him. He visits her twice a week, at the request of the officers, doctors and his mother.

The rest of the week passes like that and Izuku officially thinks he might go crazy. He doesn't think he's ever stayed at home for this long at one time. The only time he goes out is when he accompanies his mother somewhere. The down time gives him plenty of time to think and plan, but no time to act. He knows he has time, there are about five months till the entrance exam and seven until the UA school year begins, but it doesn't sit well with him. Disregarding the missing Izuku who he wants to find as soon as possible, the USJ attack had to have been planned months in advance. The best way to stop it would be to take preventative measures now. Except Izuku can't do that while under house arrest.

It's not even an official house arrest either, it's more so his mother being a helicopter parent. Not that he blames her. Every attempt he has made to go outside for one reason or another is instantly shot down, or his mom insists on going with him. Eventually, Izuku stops trying. So to burn off his endless energy, he works out in the house, does chores all day and researches, researches, researches. His mother lets him have his privacy, at least, though there is still that strange rift between them that only seems to grow.

But Izuku really can't take the waiting game any longer. He starts to formulate a plan to leave the house and work on his preventative disaster measures. It makes him feel guilty, how he'll have to sneak behind his mother's back, but it's a necessary evil he supposes. This is all for the greater good.

That night, after Izuku and his mother wish each other goodnight, he waits until enough time passes for him to ensure his mother is asleep. He creeps out of bed and pulls on a black hoodie and black pants. He finds a pair of old sneakers that don't fit him anymore, but he has yet to replace his red ones, so they'll have to do. He finds a plastic All Might mask from a Halloween costume years ago and slips in over his face, clipping it to the hood. It's probably terrible as any disguise goes, but it's the best Izuku can do for the moment. After ensuring no green curls are peeking out, Izuku rips a list of names and locations out of his notebook and slips out of his window and into the night.

This plan of his is a little tricky. He doesn't want to use the term "illegal" because that makes him sound like a criminal. And it's not like he's doing anything that illegal anyway. This is just recon. Yeah, he's just observing, for now at least. And if something were to develop, then he might step in. He isn't doing anything wrong by wandering around at night and watching people. As a future hero, he knows what is within the realms of the law.

He activates Full Cowl and jumps onto the roof of the neighboring apartment building. While he still doesn't have good control of black whip, he's managed to control it enough to use it like a grappling hook, or Sero's tape. He doesn't want to tempt fate though, so he only uses it until he reaches the inner city where the buildings are closer together, enough for him to jump across unaided by black whip. And then it's just full cowl the rest of the way. He makes sure to stay out of sight for the most part, but he can't deny that he purposely takes a longer route. He knows that time is precious, but he's been cooped up in the house for so long, and the wind whipping under his hood and through the holes in his mask makes him feel freer than he has for a long time. A hidden grin stretches across his face mirroring the one on the mask he wears. He can almost forget about the worries weighing him down, about all the responsibilities he's piled on himself. Right now, he's just a boy enjoying the usage of his quirk.

Once he reaches the part of the city he is looking for, he slows to a stop, the crackling energy of One For All fading away. He crouches down on the ledge of the building so he can get a good vantage point of the people wandering around below. Reaching into his pocket, he pulls out the crumpled list of names and unfolds it.

When the USJ event happened, Izuku had very little interaction with the lesser villains that came through the portals to kill him and his classmates. After they had dealt with the villains in the flood zone, their immediate vicinity, Izuku was more focused on the big bads than the random other criminals, or as Kacchan would dub them, "extras", scattered throughout the area. Now, he wishes he'd paid more attention.

There are two ways to go about stopping the force that invades at the USJ. He can go for the head, or he can go for the feet. Either way, the operation can't run. While he would like to go for the head and effectively shut down Shigaraki, All For One and the League before they ever announce themselves, Izuku knows he's not enough to deal with them alone. He knows the two locations of their hideout from when Kacchan was kidnapped- and he could bust right in, One for All at the ready...if he wanted to die.

If he wants to take out the head, he needs evidence of the League's actions. He needs to send in an anonymous tip and have the heroes take over to initiate a full-fledged raid like they did before. And Izuku fully plans to do that, starting with gathering the evidence and Intel.

However, he doesn't want to be blindsided by any unpredictable variables like the heroes not believing him or the information getting intercepted, so Izuku also plans to take out the feet. And that, he can do on his own.

So he spends his time under house arrest searching through the quirk database for quirks he knows the minor villains at the USJ had. (His alternate digging for the time travel or dimensional travel quirk turns up empty.) However, that is a very small pool of people due to Izuku's limited knowledge. So he makes a list of potentials too. Of course, Izuku isn't one to condemn people prematurely, so he looks into those with prior records in the Musutafu area and near Kamino. Former criminals and ones currently on the run. He even adds those with no criminal record that have inherently dangerous quirks that could attract the League's attention. If all that doesn't work, Izuku will have to scour through the backgrounds of the hundreds of people that live in the area to catch any possible villain indicators. And while Izuku would certainly do it, he knows it'll take a while and would prefer not to.

It would be a lot easier if he could ask his classmates who they encountered, or if he had access to footage, but that was impossible so Izuku doesn't dwell on it. As it is, he has a good beginning of a list and he might be able to track down more through the ones he's already found. There has to be some sort of organization and communication leading up to the USJ attack.

So, Izuku starts with the first person on the list. He knows this villain personally, although in this timeline they've never met. He's a man by the name of Kaiyō Samehada with a shark quirk. His quirk is a mutation quirk that allows him to breathe underwater and gives him a large set of razor sharp teeth and the ability to remove them. His skin can also turn blade-like, resembling the properties of scales on sharks when you stroke them the wrong way. The scales don't protrude though, so it acts more like having cactus skin than blade arms.

Yeah, Izuku encountered this villain in the flood zone with Asui and Mineta. The first few names on the list are those he met too, some of the few Izuku can actually confirm the identities of. This particular man does have a previous criminal record and has multiple warrants out for his arrest in carjackings and a couple muggings.

He usually operates around this area and with an outdated home of record (Hence why the police haven't tracked him down.) it's Izuku's only option for catching him.

The wait is long, which Izuku should have known it would be, but he's too eager and impatient. He leaves the rooftop pretty early on and removes his mask to roam around the area. He keeps his head down and his hood up and no one looks twice at him. There are a few bars that he enters just to sit in the corner and eavesdrop. He manages to get some good information, but the bartenders look at him weird after a while since he doesn't actually buy anything.

He walks around the back alleys too, passes through the red light district and takes notes. The information he records isn't especially relevant, but it might come in handy. As he roams around, he even catches word of what might be the League. Just whispers really, rumors that he can't find the origin of no matter how hard he tries. It makes sense though, that it's not that easy to track them down. He marks down the places he hears about as meeting places and visits a couple. There are lots of shady deals going on and Izuku's list of potential USJ villains lengthens considerably. Overall, it's not the productive night he was hoping for, but it is something. When the sun threatens to rise in a few hours, Izuku decides to turn in. He ends the night by stopping by the Kamino locations and scoping them out. He's a little against approaching too close, wary of All for One and his unknown locating quirks. The bar is active. The factory is not. Izuku takes pictures of everyone that goes in and out of the bar, but doesn't dare go in himself.

He's scared. Downright terrified. He knows that none of the League will recognize him, but the fear is still there. He doesn't think he can confront them and act natural. Even from afar, his limbs shake as he holds his phone. Although he would be careful, if he slips up, it's game over. Still, if he can work past it, maybe formulate a plan and a script, craft a persona, the bar could be a key tool in bringing down the League. As it is, Izuku can't stay too long and packs up to go home.

On the way home, as Izuku bounds over the buildings, he catches sight of a scuffle in an alleyway, nearer to the poor part of the city. Not one to ignore a dangerous act, Izuku stops to take in the sight of a couple of thugs extorting an innocent man. One of the aggressors is large and tall, with two horns protruding out of his head and a metal ring in his nose that glints in the low light. The other guy has hair spiked up and out, like a sea urchin, and a nasty grin on his face as he holds a knife to the victim. The man under the knife is trembling, face pale and warped into a fearful visage. Izuku only has the forethought to snap the All Might mask back over his face before he rushes in.

He goes for the knife holder first, since he's the bigger threat. One For All sparks over his limbs and he comes in close while they still haven't noticed his presence. He grabs the perp's hand and twists until he loses his grip on the knife. It falls and the guy screams out in agony. At his partner's scream the big guy notices Izuku's arrival. He only has a split second to be shocked before he snarls in barely concealed rage. Izuku takes stock of his features, both human and not, and determines his quirk must be a mutation type quirk that grants him the abilities of a bull. It seems his anger also isn't dissimilar from that animal.

He charges and Izuku plants himself in front of the victim who is still cowering in fear. The bull man is heavy, but Izuku has fought Noumu and Muscular, and in comparison, this guy is nothing. He easily stands his ground against the rush and catches the man by his horns. He now has a close up view of the red in the man's eyes and the saliva dripping from his frothing mouth. Yikes.

Izuku releases one hand to send a punch at the mountainous man. He doesn't bother to channel any more of One For All, his full cowl should be enough.

And it is. The punch connects, Izuku gets the satisfaction of seeing the man's face shift into something absurdly cartoony under his fist before he flies back and knocks out cold. The spiky man stands off to the side, staring incredulously at what transpired, one hand cradled around what is probably a broken wrist. There's a staredown in silence that Izuku fills by cracking his knuckles. He wonders what he looks like, being dressed as he is, with a plastic smiling All Might mask on his face and glowing eyes barely visible through the cutout holes. He'd be lying if he said that when spiky's face paled, it didn't give him a little bit of sadistic glee.

He runs away, leaving his cohort behind. Izuku turns to the victim and requests that he call the police. It sounds like something sketchy, he is capable of calling the police as well, but he really doesn't want to get involved in anything that will thwart his efforts too soon. He's just barely getting started, he doesn't want to ruin it prematurely because he couldn't wait until he got a license to help people.

The victim, Fugimoto Nagisa, is all too thankful for Izuku, that he agrees readily to anything he asks. Fugimoto has tear filled eyes when he shakes Izuku's hand for too long and places in it a business card for a family run I.T. service and repair shop. It's a little awkward and Izuku blushes madly the whole time, not that the man can see it, but he slips the card into his pocket anyways.

He leaves before the police arrive, bounding up the fire escape with his full cowl until he makes it back to the roof.

There is one more stop Izuku makes before he retires for the night, and that's to the store. He goes out of his way to choose somewhere his mom or him would never go usually. It would be suspicious if he entered with a mask after all, or a hood up, so he has to go in as good o'le Izuku.

He only makes two purchases, and that's a black beanie and black gloves. He would've liked to buy a better mask, maybe one that's a little sturdier and less...themed, but he should have known most stores don't just sell things like that. Izuku smiles innocently as the cashier rings him up, nervously trying to appear casual even as he knows what he's buying isn't all that alarming.

"It's getting colder, you know?" He offers with a forced laugh as the cashier bags his items.

But the man doesn't seem like he cares, he hasn't even batted an eye. He looks tired from working the graveyard shift and must be used to stranger purchases and patrons. He'll get off of work in an hour or so and probably not even remember Izuku. Speaking of a couple hours, that's also about the amount of sleep Izuku will get, so with his newly bought items, he finally returns home.