Chapter 14: Living on the Wild Side
A long thin web line shot over the buildings, a certain vigilante swinging by as he let out a yawn. "Guess its another slow morning." He commented to himself as he swung down a few blocks. "I was hoping to see those masked guys again. Still got nothing on 'em." He took a turn at this, firing another stream of webs, "Maybe I should swing by FEAST for a bit. See how everything's going. I know mom is working at the hospital today, but that doesn't mean I can't go alone."
He landed on a rooftop next, rolling as he landed before going over to the building's edge. Across the street was the FEAST center, the teen glancing around at this. 'Hmm...still nothing. Maybe I should update my notes first.' he pulled out his notebook and flipped a few pages. He had somewhat started to get the hang of quips and after yesterday's battle, he began to write up a bunch of theories on how to use his spider sense in battle more. He had also considered adding a detective part to the notebook, but decided to just do a separate small notebook at that, thinking it was better to put all the detective work he was going to have to learn on the fly in its own book.
However, when he started on that book, he found he had no case to follow. Both Tombstone's gang and the masked men weren't exactly detective cases, as both were just gangs that appeared randomly and made a mess, though he did end up adding entries for both, thought they didn't have much. After writing this, he began to try and redo his Midoriya hero app, thinking he could make it look up news reports where heroes had failed to catch criminals. However, he found it wasn't exactly what he wanted, thinking he needed a bit more time to readjust the app.
He leaned back at this, letting out a sigh as he put his notebook away and refilled his web shooters. The teen looked back at FEAST, shaking his head, "Eh, not feeling it today. I'm thinking of going on a villain hunting spree!" He leapt off the roof and fired a web line, swinging away with a single stride. 'Yeah...I'm really feeling it today! I feel like a real hero!'
And as he did this, he swung over two figures walking down the street. One was a man in a long brown trench coat while holding a white cane and the other was a small red haired woman wearing a large white hat and a light purple coat. The woman glanced up at the man and asked, "So, what is the plan today, Gentle?"
"It is to find a new act to submit myself into history, my dear La Brava!" Gentle laughed as he scratched the facemask covering his face. "But first, we must go to our destination!"
"And that is?"
"Today, we will go to Bronze-Mart! They have been recently hiding the fact that their so called 'sales' are nothing but lies! Recently, they started selling a new product that says its half off when in actuality, that 'half off' price is the real price!"
"How ungentlemanly!" La Brava gasped, "How should we punish them?!"
"Why, we'll be making a video, of course. But first, we must go and grab ourselves a spot of tea. Perhaps some Royal Honey brand?"
"Sounds wonderful!" La Brava gushed, only to glance up and see a certain vigilante swing through the street, "Oh, look! Its that new vigilante, Spider-Man."
Gentle glanced up and saw the teen, narrowing his eyes at the sight, "Indeed. You told me that videos on him have been gaining popularity online?"
"Yes...though the videos on him are on people's phones and amateur video camera junk." La Brava sighed while shaking her head, "Its actually surprising though. Vigilantes are usually looked down on."
"I suppose a different type of spirit that is neither villain or hero can gain attention." Gentle added, "Though I will not be dismayed by such an act!"
La Brava swooned at this, "That's my Gentle! Never discouraged by anything!"
"Ha ha!" Gentle cackled, only for his face to switch to a hard cold glare, "Still, I suspect its best that we do not encounter him. Let us fight the usual D-list heroes or so."
"Okay." La Brava replied as she pulled out her phone, "Hmm...looks like there's a place nearby that serves that tea."
"Wonderful! Off we go then!"
Detective Naomasa stared at the screen before him, tapping the side of his head with the eraser of his pencil as he rewatched a scene for the sixth time. It was a video from yesterday showing Spider-Man swing into a bank that people were running out of. There was nothing but fear on all their faces, but the cameras didn't show what it was. According to interviews, it had been a giant illusion of a sandpit and a massive snake...but he couldn't see any of it.
As for the villain of the incident, it was definitely one of the most craziest costumes he had ever seen, but nothing really else. Must be someone new, though of what Naomasa had looked up, there had been a report of another bank robbery a month ago over an illusion quirk, though no evidence it was this guy.
Despite all this lack of information, the scene before the detective was the beyond strange. He watched as Spider-Man, and later Shishido, both get knocked around the room...by nothing. Only for Spider-Man to disappear, then Shishido stopped flailing around a minute or so later. He switched his view to the bank safe, which showed Mysterio take a bunch of cash from the place, only to stand and talk to Spider-Man. The vigilante froze up for a second, only to suddenly grab the villain from behind and zap him.
"How did he know where he was?" Naomasa muttered as he looked down at his notes on Spider-Man. "Did the villain make a sound? I mean, according to Shishido, the snake illusion made sounds, so it can't be that..."
He glanced back up at the screen, replaying the moment Spider-Man knocked out Mysterio, "Do you have a sensory quirk as well?"
A knock on the door came next, the detective saying, "Come in!"
"Yo Naomasa!" The detective turned to see his fellow officer, the cat-headed Sansa Tamakawa. "How's it going?"
"The usual. Do you have the report over the raid the other day?"
"Yup. And you're not gonna like the numbers." Sansa replied as he handed Naomasa a folder.
Naomasa took it and went wide-eyed as he read it, soon glancing back up at Sansa, "Is this real?"
"Uh-huh." Sansa nodded.
Naomasa let out a groan and leaned back in his seat, "Oh my word...I'm so glad we covered that up." He held up the paper to his eye level at this. The report was over the event Spider-Man had led them to the other day, which included a full on bust of a warehouse filled with Trigger. Now, they didn't have all the numbers of how big this bust was, mainly because they had to process all the thugs to prison and lockdown the warehouse, but now the crime lab boys were done.
And the amount of Trigger found in the warehouse was staggering.
Naomasa had been around since Trigger first truly got its start on the streets. Granted, it had been around before he was born, but it had its biggest impact a few years back when he was on the case. Despite this, the numbers he had just been given had the potential to be on a disaster level scale of Trigger.
And Spider-Man had shut it all down.
A vigilante had essentially done the biggest Trigger drug bust since the instant villain disaster. And it was only one warehouse. Naomasa knew if this information had gotten to the hero commission and then the press, it would be an even greater disaster. A vigilante doing that much would cause the hero system to be questioned.
"Ugh..." Naomasa moaned as he gave Sansa the folder back, "This is a nightmare."
"I had a feeling you were going to say that." Sansa lowly chuckled, "And uh...the chief also wants to talk to you."
"Of course he does. I'm betting he wants me to head an investigation immediately."
"Probably."
Naomasa put a hand to his forehead and began to rub it, "I'm starting to see why Eraser is always so negative..."
Sansa shook his head at this, "Its not that bad Naomasa. Sides, maybe we'll get a break and Spider-Man will just go after small fry for a while."
"Yeah...like that'll happen. Knowing this...kid, and he is a kid, he's probably gonna go after some major A-rank villain next."
"Eh, I don't think he'll go that far. Maybe a C-Rank?"
Naomasa got out of his chair at that, "I would make a bet with you on that, but I know better. Come on, let's see what the chief wants with me."
Sansa let out a chuckle before patting Naomasa's back, "Aw, don't be so negative. Sides, if the chief wants you to catch him, maybe he'll let you team up with a hero fit for the job."
Naomasa hummed at that, closing his office's door behind him, "Maybe. I do have a few ideas for that..."
"And that's another mugger down." Izuku said to himself as he swung down another street. That was the fourth mugging he had stopped today. Despite his feeling that it was going to be a short day, Izuku found himself constantly finding small crimes. Granted, they weren't much, mainly thugs who thought they could get away with something quick before a hero showed up.
However, this left him feeling a bit unsatisfied. He expected at least one villain, but every place he went to was...empty. Like it just didn't want him to be a hero today. 'Eh, at least mom won't be mad.' he thought to himself, 'I did promise to mainly stop street crime.'
He shot another web line as he kept swinging. 'Maybe I can-' His thoughts came to a stop as the police scanner rang out.
"This is Musutafu police. We have a reported disturbance at Bronze-Mart on Sorgan Street, any hero present, please respond."
'Bronze-Mart?! Why would someone attack there?' he thought as he took a hard right, 'Better go see what's up.'
A few minutes ago...
"Behold viewers!" Gentle exclaimed as he stood atop a counter, "As you can see, Bronze-Mart is dealing in unlawful practices. This new product is not half-off, but at its normal price. It is false marketing at its core!"
"No way!" La Brava gasped as she kept the camera on him. "What will you do Gentle?"
"Why, we will punish Bronze-Mart! We shall-"
"Hold it right there!" roared a new voice, making the duo turn to see two masked heroes at the main entrance into the store. "You're under arrest!"
"Oh dear." Gentle sighed as he hopped off the counter. "La Brava, prepare to cut..." The heroes both charged in at him, Gentle quickly doing a fighting pose, "Now!"
Izuku landed on a rooftop a street across from the building, quickly readjusting his web shooters. As he did this, a scream rang out before he saw a masked hero go flying out of Bronze-Mart's main front doors. He then saw a second hero skid across the ground, making him go wide-eyed.
"Uh-oh. That's not good." He fired a web line at the building and leapt off, quickly zipping across the street. And as he did this, two individuals walked out of Bronze-Mart.
"That was amazing Gentle!" La Brava swooned, "But what about punishing Bronze-Mart?"
"It is fine, La Brava!" Gentle cackled, "We have recorded their horrible behavior! That will be enough!"
"Oh, so gentlemanly!"
"That's right!" Gentle laughed, "Now, let us return home and show the world-" His words came to a stop as the duo now saw a certain green costumed vigilante land right before them. The sight made Gentle slightly flinch as he commented, "Or...perhaps we are not done here."
Spider-Man went into a crouched stance, one hand touching the ground while the other was above him, 'Oh great, I can tell this is a theatrical one. Not again...' He took a deep breath before saying, "I'll give you one chance to give up."
Gentle shined a small grin at this, La Brava pulling out the camera, only for Gentle to flash a palm at her. "No, La Brava. Do not record this."
His partner went wide-eyed at this, "Wha...Gentle, why-"
"Don't. You told me he is beginning to be popular. I do not help others' popularity." Gentle replied as he tapped his cane on the ground.
"I'm guessing that means you're not giving up?" Izuku asked, Gentle responding with a deep glare. 'I should have gone invisible. Oh well, that's what I get for just jumping in.'
Gentle then did a bow, twirling his hand in a circular motion. "Greetings, Spider-Man. Unfortunately, our job is done today, so we will be leaving."
"Considering you just hurt a hero, you're not going anywhere!" Izuku yelled as he pointed both wrists at the villain. Pressing the triggers, the webs came out instantly. But as they were about to hit Gentle, they suddenly went upward, like they had hit a rubbery wall. "What the-"
"It seems you are not a loyal viewer. Those who know about me know about my quirk: Elasticity!" The webs then shot straight up before falling, splatting on the ground. Izuku blinked at it for a second as Gentle put his hand down. "As you can see, I can make anything elastic, including both the air..." La Brava then hopped onto his back, "And the ground! Gently Trampoline!"
BOING!
Gentle suddenly went flying upward, the ground wobbling as it shot Gentle into the air. Izuku glanced up at this, wide-eyed as he then saw Gentle make another elastic platform in the air, bouncing him away. His mind caught up a second later and fired two web lines at the Bronze-Mart rooftop and pulled back.
"You're not getting away!" Izuku declared as he slingshotted himself upward, quickly zipping into the air. And as he got to the height of his fling, he aimed his wrists at the fleeing villains, "Get back here!"
THWIP!
The webbing snagged Gentle's foot, Izuku yanking him a split-second later.
"What?!" Gentle yelped as he felt himself getting pulled down.
"Gentle! He's got your foot!" La Brava gasped.
"Come here!" Izuku roared as he kept pulling, only for the villain to spin around and form an elastic barrier under himself, bouncing himself away, this time yanking Izuku upward. "Whoa!"
"You will not catch us!" Gentle declared, "Begone vigilante!"
The villain made a second elastic platform for himself, bouncing even higher as Izuku held onto the webbing stuck on Gentle's foot. The teen then fired another line of webbing at the criminal, only for it to bounce off the barrier Gentle had just created and then went straight for Izuku's face. He quickly tilted his head, dodging his own webbing before suddenly hitting what felt like a giant invisible rubber band.
"Mmph!" He muffled before feeling the barrier push him down. He kept a firm grip on the web line, only to feel himself keep getting impaled by the elastic barrier, and then the webbing snapped. Split second later, the vigilante was shot down like a bullet, the teen gasping as his spider sense screamed at him. He fired two web lines, hitting two roofs as he pulled on them, trying to slow himself down, only for his back to hit the street.
"Yaugh!" Izuku yelped as he felt pain surge through him, the teen flinching and wincing. The teen let out a gasp, Izuku's eyes rapidly blinking as he saw Gentle slowly get away, Izuku then shaking his head. He slowly got up, cricking his back as he moaned, "Urgh...that didn't go so well." He glanced back up and pointed his web shooters, firing two and slingshotting himself upward.
But as he got back into the air, he fired another shot of webbing at Gentle, this one missing as he felt the pain in his back made him flinch his wrist. Seeing this, the vigilante began to drop as the villains kept hopping away. "Darn it!" Izuku yelled before firing another a web line at nearby building, quickly going into a long-arced swing. And as he did this, he saw his arc was about to shove him right into the pavement below, making him fire another web line, quickly yanking himself back up.
He soon got into a web swinging rhythm while looking back up at the sky, seeing the villain duo bounce away in the air. 'Blast it! They're going above the buildings! I don't have anything to get me up there!' Letting out a small groan, he just kept swinging, 'Guess I'll have to just follow them and look for an opening.'
As he continued to swing, hopping over rooftops and through alleyways, he kept his eyes on them. And as he did this, La Brava was watching him, holding onto Gentle as she said, "He's not giving up Gentle!"
"Its fine La Brava! You told me earlier that you believe he needs buildings to chase us, yes?"
"I...think so." La Brava replied as she glanced back at Gentle, "Maybe we should-eep!" She let out a yelp as something pulled on her. Gentle went wide-eyed before turning his head to his partner, now seeing a webline connected to her back. And with another tug, she was yanked off Gentle.
"La Brava!" Gentle gasped.
"Gentle, help!" his partner screamed.
Gentle spun around and created another elastic barrier, shooting himself downward this time, instantly catching La Brava just as she pulled away, wrapping one arm around her. But as this happened, he saw a mid-air Spider-Man right under them point his wrist at the two. Webbing came next, Gentle responding with a quick swipe of his free arm, creating another elastic barrier, blocking the web line before spinning again, bouncing on that same barrier before flinging away.
"Are you alright?" Gentle asked as he continued to air-hop.
"I'm okay." she replied while tightly hugging him, "Thank you."
"No need to thank me, for you are my-" his words came to a stop as another webline struck him, this one hitting his free arm. He felt himself get pulled again, Gentle spinning at this as he swung his arm, creating another barrier, this one distorting the webline before cutting it. He then summoned another under his feet and bounced away, now going even higher.
"He's not giving up!"
"I know." Gentle, "He is persistent, but I will not be dismayed! Come La Brava, let us find a place with no buildings!"
"Yes Gentle!" La Brava responded as she glanced over Gentle's shoulder, "Oh...this is not good."
Back below, Izuku kept swinging and firing line after line of webbing. He was feeling himself getting a little winded at this, having almost caught them multiple times, only to instantly be denied and having to readjust his web-swinging before trying again. But after this recent attempt, he had to hop onto a rooftop, quickly sprinting across it before firing another web line as he grumbled, "Grrr...that quirk is ridiculous! How am I supposed to catch him?!"
He fired two web lines and slingshotted himself again, covering a few more blocks as he started to get right below them before firing another web. But unlike the past few attempts, Gentle was a step ahead as La Brava warned him, making the villain spin and create another invisible elastic barrier that the webs bounced off of.
"Dang it!" Izuku yelled as he got into a swing again, 'Come on Izuku, think! They're getting away, and you're gonna run out of web fluid if you don't think of something!'
He landed on another rooftop and cut into a sprint, huffing as he parkoured over a few objects before looking ahead...and saw he was about to go into a suburb. All his tall buildings were about to end, 'I gotta do something!' He aimed his wrist one more time, 'Come on...please hit!'
He pressed his fingers on the trigger...only for it to let out a 'psst'. He was out of web fluid. He then came to a stop on the rooftop, now seeing the duo continue to bounce away. He slumped over at this, letting out a long sigh, 'Dang it! What were you doing, Izuku?! Not only should you have gone invisible to take that guy on, you didn't even try to get a spider tracer on him!' He put his hand to his face and rubbed it downward, "I can't even catch some random villain..."
Gentle continued to fly over the suburbs at this. He had gone for over twenty minutes after La Brava said she could no longer see Spider-Man. And it was here that he decided to turn around, saying he was getting tired and they both slowly landed. He switched back to some disguises, quickly making their way back to the city.
An hour or two later, they were in their department, both panting as they slumped over in chairs.
"Gentle...let's take a break for a day or two." La Brava suggested as she felt like melting in her chair.
"Agreed." Gentle moaned out, "I do not want to run into Spider-Man again. I must say, we've never had a hero be that persistent."
"Yeah...we used my quirk too quickly on those first heroes. If I hadn't-"
"Do not say it, La Brava." Gentle interrupted before sitting up straight, "Come, let us upload the video and rest. And after that...perhaps a spot of tea?"
"Absolutely!" La Brava perked up and hopped off the chair.
Izuku came home in the most depressed mood possible. Inko was already there, and she was shocked at his expression and entrance, as he was in civilian clothes instead of going through the back window. His face was like Izuku was back at Aldera, only for the teen to tell her he was going to his room. She didn't pry, knowing she wouldn't get anything out of him anyways, and let him go.
And as he walked into his room, he slumped down in his chair, flinging off his backpack that contained his suit. He wore a frown that looked like it had been nailed on his face, though his aching back tried to make his frown slightly tense up. The teen slumped at this, looking up at the ceiling and sighing as he thought about what had just happened.
It was another failure, something Izuku was used too. His whole quirkless life was nothing but failure and pain. It was normal for him. He would go weeks, months, even years of nothing but bullying and beatings, something he had just accepted was part of his life.
But now he had a quirk. A quirk he had been using to try to be a hero...only to remember all he has done. And it was not much. That very thought led to something else that kept going off in his head for a long time now.
"You'll never be hero!"
"You're just a worthless pebble!"
"Listen here loser, if you really wanna be hero...go take a swan dive off the roof and pray for a quirk in the next life."
Izuku let out a long sigh as those words kept repeating in his brain. Granted, they repeated a lot in his head over the past ten months, and even when he became Spider-Man, they never truly went away. They kept reminding him, telling him just how bad he was.
And now he had another bad day. He got beat up at the warehouse with the two gangs, he had only stopped minor villains, and every time he encountered the masked men, some always got away. Nothing but failure.
Today was just the same, as he found himself against a villain that beat up other heroes...and then they got away scott free. Like it was nothing! He could have instantly beat the villain, only to hop in guns blazing and mess up. He rubbed his face at this, letting out a groan.
"Guess...guess Kacchan is right. I'm still a failure."
But as he said that, his mind rang out three more sentences that he had heard recently, one from Martin Li:
"If you want to be a hero Izuku, then go be a hero."
And the other from that girl Ochako Uraraka:
"And as for your dream, don't give up!"
"I know you can do it!"
"There's...people that believe in me." Izuku muttered to himself, tears beginning to appear in his eyes as a few words repeated back into his head.
"You'll never be hero!"
"Listen here loser, if you really wanna be hero...go take a swan dive off the roof and pray for a quirk in the next life."
Katsuki's words rang out again, making him shrink into his chair. "Kacchan's right...I'm such a loser. A worthless Deku." He held up his mask, seeing his reflection in the lenses. Despite all this new power, he still looked the same. The weakling that cowered under those better than him. Under Kacchan.
The mask then slipped through his fingers, his hand embracing his face a second later as he closed his eyes. More thoughts of failure came through, blocking out everything before he glanced back up, only to see a large All Might poster above his desk.
"Did you ever fail All Might?" He whispered, only to let out a low chuckle, "No...you never fail. You're All Might." He continued to stare at the poster, seeing the giant man grin at him. There was something hypnotic about it, Izuku's mind drifting as he remembered the many things he had heard All Might say on TV.
"A true hero is someone that never gives up!"
That was another interview he had watched over and over. It was one of Izuku's favorites. And as he stayed stuck in his head, he reached down and grabbed the mask, putting it on the desk as he said, "That's right. If there's one thing a hero never does, it's give up. All Might doesn't give up...then that means I can't either."
Izuku turned to another part of his desk, pulling out a notebook he had been recently writing in called 'Spider-Man Cases'. In it were notes on every fight he had done so far, including that first night with the bank robbers. There were notes on the Vulture, the masked men, Tombstone's gang, Mysterio, and now...he began an entry for Gentle Criminal.
'I'll start hunting for you tomorrow, Gentle Criminal.' he mentally told himself, 'Count on it.'
Chapter 15: A Distracting Stinger
Two days had passed since his encounter with Gentle Criminal. Despite writing down and planning everything he would do if he found the villain again, Gentle Criminal had gone silent. This was surprising, as he had looked up the villain after their encounter and found tons on him, though most being what the villain recorded himself.
He was arrogant, and loved causing trouble, though it was all minor crimes until he fought the heroes. However, none could catch him, which Izuku found surprising, as he knew his quirk was powerful and good for retreating, but he seemed to beat plenty of heroes with ease. They were all and C and D-list heroes, but they should be able to handle it, so that means he had to have a trump card. Izuku knew he had to have one, as anytime a fight happens in the video, it cuts.
As such, Izuku had nothing, and had spent the two days patrolling, feeling mostly aimless. Little scuffles with muggers and car thieves were all he could find. Nothing on the masked men, Tombstone's gang or this Gentle Criminal. There was nothing, nada, zilch.
Because of this, he was now at FEAST, letting out a long sigh as he helped bring in some supplies for a soup kitchen they were preparing. He was now carrying six full boxes, unable to see anything in front of him as he walked over to the main kitchen area. "Where do you want this, Mister Li?"
"Over there." Li responded, pointing to a section, only to glance back and see Izuku couldn't see him. Chuckling at the sight, he added, "On the table to your left."
"Got it." Izuku replied as he went over and put the boxes down.
As he did this and began to unstack them, Li walked over and patted his shoulder, making the teen turn to him, "You sure you're quirkless?"
"Uh-huh." Izuku nodded, getting a bit tired of being asked that. Multiple people at FEAST had asked them over the past week after seeing how strong Izuku was. Two of them asked to arm wrestle, only for Izuku to beat both with ease. It wasn't until he had to literally lift his shirt for them, showing his abs, (And he made sure to not be wearing his Spider-Man outfit underneath it) that they decided he must be telling the truth about his quirklessness.
However, Li seemed to still be a little less convinced to Izuku as the man just shook his head, "You're something else." Li laughed, "Still, glad you seem to be getting over your stutter."
"What do you mean?" Izuku responded with a raised eyebrow.
"You're speaking more casually now." Martin patted his shoulder again, "Its an improvement, though I have to ask, is something wrong? You seem...aimless today."
"Eh." Izuku shrugged, "Let's just say...I can't find something I'm looking for and its getting old."
"I know that feeling." Li chuckled, "Tell you what, why don't you finish up and then go out for the rest of the day. You look like you need some fresh air. We'll handle the kitchen today." He then gestured his head to the side, "That and your mother tells me you're not the best for the kitchen."
"She says that about everybody." Izuku replied in a deadpan tone, "She thinks it her domain and only her domain."
Li let out a roar of laughter at that, "There ya go!" He patted Izuku's shoulder once more, "Now, go on and finish up, alright?"
"Um...okay." Izuku slowly said before going back to the supply truck. A few minutes later, he was done carrying in the boxes and said goodbye to his mother, Inko knowing what he was going to be doing next. After all, it was now time for Spider-Man.
"Thanks for coming Eraser." Naomasa said as the underground walked into the detective's office. He had a cup of coffee in his hand, taking slight sips as Naomasa put his notepad away.
"Eh, its good to leave the school every now and then." Eraser grumbled as he took another sip.
"Well, thank you anyways. I know you're busy since the UA sports festival is literally one week away, but-"
"But you asked for me. Its fine." Eraser sighed while scratching the back of his head, "Sides, my students are currently getting some extra training today and I don't need to be there."
"All Might watching over them?"
"Don't mention his name around me." Eraser growled, "Now, what do you want? What's the case?"
Naomasa let out a chuckle and shook his head, "You know he's not that bad. As for why you're here..." He took out a folder and slid it across the desk, Eraser soon picking it up. The underground hero stared at it for a second before opening it up, only for his eyes to slightly widen.
"This is..." He glanced back up at Naomasa, "Is this for real?"
"Yup. The amount and everything. We're keeping it under wraps for now."
"Okay." Eraser put the coffee down and scanned the files over, only to look back up at Naomasa again, "When did this happen?"
"Almost a week ago. And if you're wondering, yes, we didn't do a thing. It was all Spider-Man."
"He did a drug bust this big?!" Aizawa asked, Naomasa nodding back, "Dang. You're right to cover that up then. You've made sure the commission doesn't know?"
"Not a peep. I've tried hard to keep their grubby eyes and ears out of this. I mean, if they found out-"
"They'd want Spider-Man hauled off to Tartarus." Eraser finished, "There's no way they'd accept a vigilante doing that kind of work, even if it is this new...Inner Demons gang. It would make people really start questioning their precious 'hero society'."
"Yup. That's why the chief has assigned me to catch him." Naomasa replied as Eraser handed him the file back.
"And you want me to help you?" Naomasa nodded in response, "Figures. You do realize if you have me do this, Nezu will want to meddle. He knows you called for me."
"I know." Naomasa put the folder away at this, "But I don't really have a choice. This is my case now, and I need the help that I know can get me Spider-Man."
"And once you caught him? Then what?"
Naomasa leaned back in his chair at that, "I'm...not sure. Ideally, we can find out why he never tried to be a hero and go from there. Maybe we could-"
WHAM!
The office door was slammed open, the two turning to it as Sansa ran in, "Naomasa! You've got to see this! Now!"
Naomasa and Aizawa shared a glance before getting up, the two leaving the room as they went into the main room of the police department. There, they saw several officers all crowded around a television, a reporter talking through the screen.
"This is eighteen news reporting a villain attack! Right now, Pro Hero Fourth Kind and the vigilante known as Spider-Man are fighting off a rampaging villain that calls itself, 'The Scorpion'!"
A few minutes ago...
Izuku was sitting on a rooftop a few blocks away from FEAST. Ever since going there, he tried to make sure he appeared as Spider-Man some distance away so no one would get suspicious of the place or his connection to it. Granted, he knew that people suspected he probably lived in Musutafu, but that was unavoidable. Despite this, he had only done a few swings before sitting down on a rooftop, unable to get any momentum going today.
"Ugh..." he groaned to himself as he stared at his notebook, trying to think of something to write down...only for his brain to give him nothing. Sighing at this, he slumped over and put the notebook away, "Darn it! I'm such a worthless Deku! Why can't I find anything?! Surely there's something I can do to find those masked guys or Tombstone's gang or..."
THOOM!
A sudden loud noise rang out, making the vigilante hop in place before running to the edge of the rooftop. There, he went wide-eyed as he saw a certain pro hero fighting a villain across the street. It was Fourth Kind, and he was fighting a villain dressed in a dark green metallic suit with a long winding tail that had a blade at the end of it. The tail seemed to be coming from the villain's behind, though he had perfect control over it. It looked as if the fight had just started, the two now fighting in the street as Fourth Kind seemed to be trying to push the villain into a nearby construction site.
Izuku watched as the four-armed man fired rapid punches at the villain, only for the villain to block over half of them with just his tail before hitting Fourth Kind back with a set of quick jabs.
"You're not beating the Scorpion, you two-bit hero!" the villain roared as he thrust his tail, Fourth Kind barely ducking under the blade.
"Grrr...you little-" Fourth grunted as he swung another punch, only for Scorpion to catch it with own his hands. Fourth followed this by thrusting three more punches at the same time, Scorpion backpedaling as he dodged each blow.
"Looks like he might need some help." Izuku commented as he fired a web line, zipping himself across the street. And as he landed on the roof, he turned invisible and leapt off the building. As he did this, Fourth knocked Scorpion back, the two now in the middle of a construction site. However, as he landed two more blows into Scorpion, the villain just withstood the punches before swinging his tail. The tail did an upward diagonal swing, slashing Fourth with a deadly precision as it cut through his suit. Blood began to spill out at this, making Fourth stagger back.
"Ha! Worthless hero!" Scorpion laughed as he extended his tail back, ready to thrust it right into Fourth's head as the hero tried to recover. "Now...die!"
He fired the tail, about the strike the hero-
THWIP!
A web line hit the top of the blade, only to instantly be yanked up, making him miss the pro hero. "What the?!" Scorpion yelped as he saw his tail fling away. He swung his tail back and forth at this, the blade snapping the webbing before he lowered the tail up to his face, "Webs?"
"My calling card." said a voice behind him before Scorpion felt a tap on his shoulder.
ZAP!
"Yeow!" Scorpion screeched as electricity surged through his body, only to instantly spin around, thrashing his tail at this. Izuku quickly leapt back at this, dodging the tail as he saw Scorpion was still standing despite being zapped.
"Great...that didn't work." Izuku sighed as his invisibility wore off due to him using his bio-electric powers. Scorpion now saw the vigilante, growling at the sight.
"Spider-Man! So, you want a piece of the Scorpion too?"
"The Scorpion? That's your name?" Izuku replied, "I thought it would be something less lame, like...green tailed man."
"What?! Why you little-" Scorpion growled, only to feel something yank his tail. He turned around to see Fourth Kind holding onto the tail with his one of his arms as he thrusted his three other arms at the villain. All three punches struck him, only for the villain to backpedal and yank at his tail, the bladed weapon slipping out of Fourth's grasp. He then thrust the tail at the hero, Fourth crossing his arms at this. The blade struck the four arms and slipped over it, almost cutting the top of Fourth's head.
"Urgh!" Fourth grunted as he started to stagger back, only for Scorpion to spin around, swinging the tail in a wide arc. Izuku's spider sense blared at this, making him leap back again, barely dodging the tail. As this happened, Fourth charged at Scorpion, only for the villain to just thrust his tail again, this time not even looking at the hero. Fourth had to side-step at this, evading the tail as Scorpion saw Spider-Man charge up a Venom Punch, his arm sparking in power.
"You're not stopping me!" Scorpion roared as he charged at the vigilante, his tail now over his head as he ran. Seeing this, Izuku turned off the Venom Punch and instead aimed both wrists at him, firing a two shot of webbing right at the villain's face. But as they webs were about to hit, Scorpion whipped the tail in front of his head, cutting both shots with the tail's blade. He then thrust a punch at Spider-Man, Izuku quickly ducking under the jab, only for a second punch to slam into the teen's face. And as Izuku staggered back, Scorpion thrust his tail at him, blade going straight for the teen's neck.
But as this happened, the tail was suddenly yanked back, Fourth now grabbing it again before throwing a trio of punches at the villain. However, this time Scorpion just let the blows hit his back before yanking at his tail, slipping it out of Fourth's grip again before spinning around and punching Fourth in the face. The hero staggered back at this, only for Scorpion's tail to sweep low, knocking over Fourth's feet, making the hero collide with the dirt.
"Fourth Kind!" Izuku gasped before swinging a Venom Punch at the villain, Scorpion quickly spinning around and blocking it with his tail. But as the bio-elec punch hit it, the lightning surged through the villain's body, making him flinch.
"Gah!" Scorpion yelped before swinging his tail upward, smacking Izuku with the back part of the blade.
"Blaugh!" Izuku cried as he was knocked off his feet. As this happened, Fourth got back up and slammed four fists into Scorpion's back, making him cry out in pain. And as the villain felt this, he spun again, swinging the tail in a wide arc at the hero, only for Fourth to grab the tail. However, he used all four hands to grab it this time, Scorpion quickly finding himself unable to get it out of Fourth's grip.
"Let's see how you fare without this blade of yours!" Fourth growled as he let out a grunt of aggression, twisting the end of the tail. He then lifted two fists up and thrust them down on the blade, breaking it into pieces.
"NO!" Scorpion yelled, only to yank the tail out of Fourth's grip again. "You're gonna pay for that!" He then swung the tail in a wide arc once more, smacking Fourth into the face. The blow knocked him down again, the hero's back hitting the ground with a thud.
"DIE!" Scorpion screamed as he thrust his tail's broken blade down next, only for web lines to hit his back. He was then yanked away from the hero, missing his target as his tail's end hit the dirt. He spun around at this, only to be met with a Venom Punch right into his face. "Blaugh!"
Electricity surged through him, knocking him off his feet and flew over the hero. And as the villain hit the ground, Spider-Man ran up to the downed hero, "Mister Fourth Kind! Are you okay?" The hero let out just a grunt of pain, showing he was trying to form words. "Mister Fourth Kind?!"
Danger!
His spider sense blared at this, making him look up to see Scorpion already recovered and thrusting his tail again. Spider-Man ducked under the weapon before firing a glob of webbing, Scorpion quickly side-stepping to dodge it. And as this happened, he swung the tail again, Spider-Man somersaulting over it before thrusting another Venom Punch. But as he did this, Scorpion just side-stepped again, dodging the blow before trying to stab the vigilante. Izuku quickly backpedaled at this, just barely able to get out of the tail's reach.
"Go away!" Scorpion roared as he thrust the tail again and again, Izuku's spider sense screaming as it helped him duck and dodge each attack. He then fired several shots of webbing, the villain's tail quickly zipping around, blocking every web.
'Darn it! I can't seem to get a good shot on him! Think Izuku, think!'
"Grrr...stop moving!" Scorpion barked again as he began to run right at the vigilante, Izuku firing two web lines upward. The webbing hit two girders and he yanked himself upward, swinging right over the villain. Seeing this, Scorpion spun around as Spider-Man landed and did another wide arc with his tail. As this happened, Izuku's spider sense blared, making him go down to all fours, slipping under the tail before spinning and thrusting both legs right up at Scorpion's face. The blow knocked him back, only for the villain to swing the tail wide again. This time it hit Izuku's stomach, the blow striking with the middle part of the tail, knocking the wind out of the teen and off his feet. Scorpion then spun around, Izuku stuck on the tail before being flung across the construction site.
"Augh!" Izuku yelped as he slammed into a pile of bricks.
"Ha!" Scorpion laughed before looking back at Fourth Kind, who was still trying to get up. "Don't you dare." the villain hissed as he pointed the broken bladed tail at the hero, "Your life ends today."
And as he said this, a new sound made him look up, now seeing a helicopter flying overhead. The sight made him blink before smirking, "Looks like we got an audience." He glanced back at the hero, "But I gotta cut this short. After all, if the press is here, heroes will soon come crawling."
He lifted the tail over the hero, licking his lips at the sight. But as he was about to thrust the tail down-
THWIP!
Two web lines hit his shoulder, instantly yanking him away. "Seriously?!" Scorpion yelled as he swiped his tail, cutting the webbing, "Don't you get it?! That doesn't work!"
"It might not work, but I won't let you hurt that hero!" Izuku barked back as he fired two more web lines, both going to either side of Scorpion. He then slingshotted himself at the villain, Scorpion replying with another tail thrust at the vigilante.
'Gotta time this just right...now!' Izuku thought as he swung his leg upward, connecting with tail and smacking it away from incoming vigilante. He then slammed his other foot into Scorpion's face, knocking him back as Izuku backflipped and landed on all fours, showing a signature spider-like pose.
Scorpion staggered back at this, only for Izuku to thrust a Venom Punch at him. But as he did this, Scorpion caught it with his hand, the electricity zapping the villain, only for him to punch Spider-Man in the face with his other hand. And as the blow hit, he kept his grip on the vigilante before zipping his tail up and around Izuku, constricting the hero like a snake as the tail grabbed Spider-Man's stomach.
He then began to squeeze, making Izuku moan and Scorpion laugh, "HA! You're no match for me either!"
"I...wouldn't...say...that." Izuku groaned before as he slowly pointed his other hand at Scorpion's face.
THWIP!
"Augh!" Scorpion yelped as webbing covered his face, making him let go of Izuku before flinging his tail, throwing the vigilante across the site again. Izuku hit the ground, rolling in the dirt before quickly getting back up, now seeing Scorpion trying to get the webbing off with his tail. But as he did this, Izuku fired two web lines upward, slingshotting himself into the air. He then landed on a nearby girder and charged a full fist of bio-electricity.
"This ends now!" he yelled as he leapt off the girder just as Scorpion got the webbing off. "Venom Smash!"
The vigilante slammed down on the villain, a surge of lightning pouring out as Scorpion was zapped, his skeleton now appearing for a split second. He let out a scream of pain, his body now being slammed into the ground. And as Izuku landed on top of him to deliver this blow, the tail did one last swing, smacking Izuku off.
"Waugh!" Izuku cried as he was knocked away again, landing into another brick pile. And as he laid there, Scorpion slowly got up, his body still flinching as electricity surged around him.
"You little..." he groaned as out as he walked over to the downed Spider-Man, quickly thrusting his hand into the brick pile and yanking Izuku out by the throat. The teen felt the villain's grip on his neck, squeezing it as Scorpion lifted his tail up to the teen's face.
"I was just gonna kill the hero and get out of here, but then you just had to interfere." the villain growled as he pulled the tail back, "Now, you're dead."
Izuku's eyes creaked open at this, seeing the broken blade on the tail pointed straight at him. The teen tried to move his arms up at this, feeling like he had to do something, anything, in that last desperate bit of struggle. But as Scorpion's words hit his ears, he saw the tail come for him.
'Guess Kacchan was right. I'll never be a hero.'
He closed his eyes as the villain thrust his tail...only to feel nothing. Izuku's eyes opened back up at this, only to see a large hand now pulling the tail back. It was Fourth Kind. And he was angry.
"Hey! Lemme go!" Scorpion yelled, his grip loosening on Izuku's neck. Feeling this, Izuku felt his body surge in pain for a second as he commanded it to move and thrust his right leg upward, kicking the villain in the face. "Blaugh!"
"Come here you!" Foruth Kind roared as he pulled Scorpion away, the villain stumbling back as the hero let go of his tail and curled up all four of his fists. "Quad Arm Beatdown!"
In the next few seconds, a fury of fists slammed into Scorpion, beating his face into a pulp before doing a four-fist uppercut into his jaw, knocking the villain off his feet. The man hit the dirt with a loud thud, creating a small dust cloud as he let out a long-defeated moan.
"Finally..." Fourth Kind growled before turning his attention to Izuku, now seeing the vigilante laying down on some uncomfortable rubble. The teen waved his arms around, the hero seeing he was trying to get up. He stared at the vigilante for a second before walking over and giving the teen a hand. Izuku's eyes blurred at this moment, a fuzzy hand appearing before refocusing as he took it.
"You okay?" Fourth asked as he hoisted Izuku up.
"Uh...yeah. Maybe." Izuku groaned out before putting a hand on his back and pushing it in, a crick sound soon following, "I...I think I'll live."
"Ha! Good!" Fourth chuckled before patting the vigilante's shoulder, "I uh...I'm not used to saying this to a vigilante, but...thank you."
Izuku's brain was still trying to catch up at this, the teen blinking for a second before replying, "Huh?"
"You saved me." Fourth responded, "I thought I could handle that guy, but it looks like it was too much for me. So...thank you."
"No...problem." Izuku slowly said, taking a deep breath, "Sorry. Still winded from all that."
"I understand." Fourth laughed.
"Spider-Man!" yelled another voice, making the two turn and see several reporters running up to them. One quickly put a microphone up to the vigilante, "Hey! Who are you and why are you a vigilante?!"
"Yeah!" Another exclaimed, "Tell us!"
This was followed by a barrage of questions, Fourth Kind grumbling a 'blasted vultures' under his breath as more reporters ran up to the duo. But Izuku couldn't respond. His whole head was in a daze, only for the microphones and cameras to be suddenly shoved into his face. And as he felt this, he heard one of the reporter's questions...only to not know what to say. He just stared ahead, his brain glitching at the sight before him. And when another mic hit his face, his brain activated the only thing it could think of.
"What the-where'd he go?!" one of them yelped as Izuku became invisible. A second later, they saw two strands of webbing appear out of nowhere, only for them to be yanked. Spider-Man was invisibly swinging away, having answered zero questions. Seeing this, they turned to Fourth Kind, only for him to tell the reporters to go away.
"Looks like we're too late." Naomasa commented as they arrived at the crime scene right when the press had stampeded Spider-Man, only for him to get away. This was followed by several more heroes arriving on the scene, trying to get there in time to help fight, but it was already over. The sight made him sigh, Eraserhead walking up to him with a low stare.
"Eh, that's how it works for vigilantes. At least he acts like he's not going for fame."
"True." Naomasa sighed again, "Still, wish we could have got him. Guess we'll be talking to Fourth Kind next."
"Good luck with that. That guy has quite the temper."
"Eh, that's how most people are."
Izuku wasn't sure when he got home. Regularly, he would have mentally insulted himself about just running from the press and Fourth Kind. He also knew his mom would be worried, mainly because a bunch of the Scorpion fight had been technically televised. That meant a lot of people saw it. And that meant he would be appearing online a lot more, along with the news...and his first full impression with news people was him running away.
But he didn't really think about it. He was so tired. That fight was the toughest yet, and he felt like he was going to collapse any second. Thankfully, he got home while still barely able to keep his invisibility on, quickly changed, took a small shower...and collapsed. He was out like a light, his body too sore to go any further.
It wasn't long till his mother came home. She marched up to their apartment, shaking her head as she kept telling herself she had to get used to this. But as she walked inside and opened the door to Izuku's room, she paused at the sight inside. Her son was there, asleep and alive. Granted, she knew she would probably have to bandage him up, but...he was alive.
That would have to be enough.
She went inside and did what she needed to, glad more than ever she was a nurse as she bandaged up the sleeping teen. And when she was done, she closed the door and made herself some supper before turning on the tv. She began to eat, only to switch it to the news channel, going wide-eyed for a second before seeing her son on the screen.
"As you can see, the vigilante known as Spider-Man came in and assisted Fourth Kind in a crazy battle today! And I must say, he's very powerful! Just look at him!" said one reporter.
"I agree." replied another, "Even though he's a vigilante, according to what we've been told, he has done nothing but good. He just stopped a B-rank villain, one that has been reported to have killed ten people."
"Sounds to me that he should be a pro." a third one chimed in, "I mean, this guy has stopped multiple bank robberies and now this? He's on his way to getting more reputation than most upcoming heroes right now."
"Bah." remarked a fourth, "Vigilantes are still people using their quirks illegally. That means he's a villain. If he keeps going like this, he'll encourage more to break the law!"
Inko flinched at that, only to see the first three nod in agreement. That made her feel a sinking feeling in her stomach as a fifth reporter spoke up, "I suppose. That being said, our reporter on the ground tried to interview him after the fight, but it seems he's shy. He ran away without answering the crucial question: Why is someone like that a vigilante?"
"I wish I didn't know the answer to that." Inko sighed as she leaned back in her chair, now watching the reporters debate over the vigilante, most saying that he is breaking the law, though they agree he did help. But none call him a hero, only a vigilante.
Hearing this, she glanced back at the door to Izuku's room, "Oh Izuku...nothing's ever easy, is it?"
Meanwhile...
A single finger tapped a key, ending the news footage before a sigh escaped the person's lips. "Looks like its just as we feared, Gentle."
"Indeed." Gentle sighed, leaning back in his chair before taking a sip of tea. "It seems this Spider-Man is going to be in the spotlight for some time."
"Yup." La Brava added as she closed the laptop before turning to Gentle, "So...what now?"
Gentle put a hand to his chin before replying, "This will be just the start for Spider-Man. I don't want to get involved with him again, so..." He took one more sip before taking out a phone, "It seems we'll have to try something new." He put his cup down and began typing out a number, soon sending a call. A second later, a response went through his ear before he said, "Tinkerer? Its Gentle. I would like to talk about that favor you owe me."
Chapter 16: A Tiny, Thin Thread
Despite the extra rest he got, Izuku slept in the next day. He knew that the fight from yesterday had really done him in, as the teen was still feeling sore. And when he woke up, he looked over his classes before seeing that his mother had already gone out for her job. After this, he went to his costume and the saw damage on it, but it was nothing he couldn't sew up.
And as the morning passed, he left the building as Izuku, though he had his costume in his backpack, feeling his body be a bit less sore. Now, he had recently been changing into Spider-Man and just swinging over to FEAST, allowing him to get there quicker, but he didn't feel like it today. Instead, he just took the train, now remembering what regular transportation was like.
As he sat there, his mind wandered over the past few days, trying to make sense of how crazy his life had become. A month and a half ago, he had no quirk, and was hating the support-based future he was going to have to go into. Now, he had a quirk, was a vigilante, was investigating multiple villain gangs and volunteering. It was like everything just happened at once.
He looked down at this hands, flexing them as he felt the strength surge through his body. 'Wow. I have to say, I know I always wanted a quirk, but...I never expected it to take me down this route. Still, am I doing the right thing? I mean, I'm a vigilante, but I can't seem to talk to any hero when they compliment me or catch those criminal gangs and...and...'
He leaned back at this, letting out a sigh. 'I wanna do more. What else can I do? What else do heroes do?'
The teen pulled out his phone at this, turning on the Midoriya hero app. And as he looked at the main hero news, he found half of it was himself, several news stations showing him fight The Scorpion. There were also several debates over him, articles talking about how a vigilante shouldn't be part of some mainstream fight like that while others went over how much he helped or hindered. The sight made Izuku hum, as he had seen tons of articles debating heroes, all of them talking how good or bad they were. (Endeavor being probably the most debated if he was honest.)
And after a few more bits of reading, he closed the app and sighed. After viewing all that, his mind just kinda let out a mental hum, 'Huh. Never thought I would see myself debated on tv as a vigilante. I mean, I've barely done anything. Don't they usually only talk about the top twenty or so heroes?'
A second later, the train made its next stop, Izuku soon exiting the vehicle. As he left the small station, he walked down two streets before looking up and seeing FEAST in the distance. The sight made him slightly smile, soon walking up the steps next, a certain snake headed girl lightly waving at him. "Izuku! How's it going?"
"Um...okay, I guess." he replied as he went through the main doors. "How is everything today?"
"Fine." Gloria responded while sticking her forked tongue out, "Just you today?"
"Yup. Mom's at the hospital."
Gloria nodded back, "Cool. Well, get in here. Mister Li is making a crew to help out one of our people here. They got a job and were able to get an apartment going nearby. They need some volunteers for helping move some stuff."
"Oh, that's nice. Sure, I can do that."
"Of course you can, mister super strength." Gloria chuckled, making Izuku sigh.
"I don't have super strength."
"Yeah yeah, mister six pack. Come on." Gloria gestured him to follow, "Let's get you to work."
Meanwhile...
Uraraka had just sat down with her tray of food in the UA cafeteria, her best friend Tsuyu sitting down beside her a second later. And as they waited for the rest of their friends to come over, the frog girl spoke up, "Looks like that vigilante you were talking about is getting popular, kero."
"Huh?" Uraraka turned to her as she put a piece of rice in her mouth.
"That vigilante, Spider-Man."
"Oh." Uraraka gulped down a bit of food before humming, "Really?"
Tsuyu nodded back and pulled out her phone, "See?"
Uraraka watched the footage of Spider-Man fighting The Scorpion, the sight making her go slightly wide-eyed. "Whoa...I had no idea."
"You didn't, kero?"
Uraraka shook her head, "After yesterday's training, I went home and crashed." She squinted as she continued to watch the fight, "He's incredible. Can you imagine getting into a villain fight like that?"
"No, kero." Tsuyu responded, "Though I gotta say, I get why you thought he was amazing the other day."
"Yeah..." Uraraka replied as she took a sip of her drink.
As she did this, three more people sat down around them. One that was across them was Mina, the pink girl shining a big grin as she asked, "Whatcha talking about?"
"This, kero." Tsuyu showed her phone to the girl, Mina raising an eyebrow before going wide-eyed.
"Wow." Mina replying, only for their two friends Iida and Kirishima, who were both sitting beside her, now leaned in to watch the footage as well, both blinking at the sight.
"Now that's manly." Kirishima commented, "That's my kind of brawl!"
"Hmph!" Iida added while chopping his arm in the air, "I won't deny that the fight is impressive, but that is still footage of a vigilante! How dare he interfere with that hero's fight!"
Uraraka giggled at the sight of her stiff friend, only for Kirishima to say, "But class rep, didn't you see what he just did? He saved Fourth Kind and kicked that villain's butt!"
Iida pushed his glasses up with two fingers, "That's not the point. He is using his quirk illegally!"
"But didn't he just help save a bunch of people?" Uraraka asked, "I mean, look at the article with the video." She pointed at the phone, the others looking back at it and seeing the article talk about how Scorpion had killed multiple people in his rampage before Fourth Kind and Spider-Man stepped in. "That villain was doing a lot of damage, and Spider-Man made sure he didn't get away with it."
"That is true." Iida started chopping his arm again, "But still, he is breaking the law! They should be trying to catch him. After all, if he's allowed to just roam free like that, others will start doing the same."
The others blinked at this, Tsuyu tilting her head slightly before putting her phone away, "I guess so, kero. Still, seems like he's been doing some good. Makes me wonder why he isn't a hero, kero."
"No kidding. If I had that kind of awesome power, I would go to hero school for sure!" Kirishima chimed in, "I mean, I got into UA with my hardening quirk, and its barely a quirk in general."
"Don't sell yourself that short, Kiri." Mina replied, grinning at the teen before putting a finger to her chin, "Still, it makes you wonder, why didn't he go to hero school? I could totally see him being able to get into UA with his quirk. Think he got kicked out or something?"
"I don't see how. I mean, didn't you see that fight? He's super powerful!" Uraraka responded.
Tsuyu shook her head at this, "I think UA has shown us that you need more than your quirk to succeed as a hero, kero."
They all shared a glance at this, Iida pushing his glasses up again, "Wise words, Asui!"
"I told you to call me Tsu."
Iida ignored her statement as he kept speaking, "Indeed, there is more to heroics than the strength of your quirk. That much is understandable, which does make me think perhaps Spider-Man did get expelled somehow."
"Yeah..." Mina added, only to shine a mischievous grin, "Say, what if it was Aizawa-sensei?" The four turned to her with slightly widened eyes, making her giggle, "Aw, come on. Surely you can see this is some student he expelled. Maybe he got jealous of how much power this guy had."
Tsuyu put a finger to her mouth at that, "I suppose, kero. Aizawa-sensei is always talking about how things shouldn't be irrational. Giving up someone like Spider-Man seems very irrational...but maybe he saw that as rational, kero."
"I could see that." Uraraka sighed while the rest hummed at this, Uraraka then pulling out her phone as she saw it inform her something on the phone's calendar. She blinked at it for a second before turning to her friends, "Hey, not to change the subject, but who's free after school tomorrow? I have an idea that I think you'd all like to try."
"Thank goodness that's over." Izuku moaned as he walked out of the building, cricking his back at the same time.
"No kidding." Gloria chuckled as she handed Izuku a drink, the teen telling her thank you. They both took a sip before the snake girl then asked, "So, feel like you did some good today?"
Izuku nodded back, "Yeah...I do. Thanks for letting me do this."
"Eh, its my job. There's a reason I help run FEAST with Mister Li." She took another sip, "The guy is constantly moving recently. Its like he can't stay still."
"Oh? I haven't noticed."
"Its cuz you're not here everyday." Gloria added as she pulled out her phone, "Hmm...looks like there's nothing else." She looked back up at Izuku, "Wanna call it a day?"
"I guess." Izuku replied while taking another sip.
"Cool. See ya tomorrow?"
Izuku shrugged back, "I'll see. You never know what's happening around here."
"True. Need a ride back to FEAST?"
"Nah, I'll take the train." Izuku responded before starting to walk away, glancing back to wave at Gloria, "Give Mister Li my regards!"
"Will do." Gloria waved at him back before glancing down at her phone, "Heh. Such a nice kid." She then looked back at the building, remembering how much Izuku helped bring into the building, "Still...wish I had that kind of strength." She glanced back at the fleeing figure of Izuku, "He does seem to be opening up though."
A few blocks later, Izuku glanced back to see no one had followed him. He had actually walked past the train station, but he trusted his spider sense to tell him if someone was watching. As such, he walked one more block before slipping into an alleyway and behind a dumpster. Seeing no one around, he threw his drink into the trash and turned invisible, soon crawling up the alley's walls and changed into his costume as he got to the rooftop before turning visible.
He did a few stretches next, checked his web shooters and began his usual town web-slinging. And as he began to zip across some streets, he pulled out his police scanner. He started to listen, only hearing a few minor disturbances, all in other parts of the city he was nowhere near.
It was about half an hour in that he came to a stop on a rooftop, exchanging web cartridges before looking down at his phone and pulling up the Midoriya hero app. 'There's nothing really happening right now...' He put a hand to his chin and rubbed it, his mind going over the past few days again. Despite the fight with Scorpion, he couldn't help but think about the chase with Gentle Criminal and the masked gang that kept getting away. 'I'm still not doing enough.'
He then thought about what he had tried earlier with the Midoriya hero app, about it searching for when heroes failed to catch criminals. He tapped his phone a few times at this, 'I still never fully got it to work...' He sat down on the roof and began fiddling with the device, an hour soon passing as he tried to rework the search engine slightly. 'I need my computer.' he mentally told himself before doing a search, 'But this might do.' The app then let out a ding, showing a new list of reports. They were of police reports, something that was already programmed into the app, but without heroes in the reports.
"There's only a few here." He whispered as he saw the reports, most showing just disturbances or police getting to a scene a little too late. That is, till one caught his eye. "Bank on Rodia street robbed? That's not far from here, and it happened last night." He closed the phone and put it away, "Maybe I could take a look. I mean, part of hero stuff is doing detective work, right?"
He fired a web line and leapt off the building, soon swinging his way across the street.
The rattling of chains were the only thing that could be heard in the place as a couple of thugs stood in attention. Their boss had just walked into the room, a bottle of whiskey in his hand. He was a large, bulky man wearing a big dark biker jacket. He wasn't tall per say, but rather very wide yet obviously not fat in the slightest. His form was pure muscle, but his most defining feature was his chalky white skin, complete with shining razor teeth and a bald head.
"Hello boys." He grumbled before taking a swig of whiskey. As the liquid went down his throat, he wiped his mouth as he added, "So, where are we with the Inner Demons? Do we have their hideout?"
"No idea boss." one of the thugs replied, "We think...we think they're stationed somewhere in Musutafu, but-"
"I already knew that." the boss interrupted, walking up to the thug. The thug was tall and had a rhino for a face, but he was shivering like a leaf at the bulky man staring up at him. "Tell me, what gang are you part of?"
"Your gang, boss." the thug squeaked out.
"That's right." the boss chuckled before pointing at himself, "My gang. The Tombstone gang." He took another swig of whiskey and spinning around, soon walking over to a motorcycle that was sitting in the middle of the room, "And I didn't come out of hiding and form this gang so you idiots could ruin everything by fighting some masked punks and D-list heroes!" He glanced back at the thugs, "I made it so we can make money, and lots of it. I made the new Trigger drug, and I want it everywhere in this city."
He stared at the thugs, none of them responding before letting out a sigh and shaking his head, "Stop squirming and staring." He grumbled before leaning back on the motorcycle, "Listen, I know these...Inner Demons are trying to take both our turf and our drugs." He took another swig, "I want them dead. That or get the heroes to take 'em down."
"What about Spider-Man?" one of the thugs asked, Tombstone turning to him.
"What about him?"
"Well...he got our biggest warehouse busted. Aren't we gonna do something about it?"
Tombstone let out a snort at that, "He's a vigilante. That means he doesn't have some agency we can just go up too and wreck house." Tombstone then shined a small grin at this, "Let him be for now."
"Boss?"
Tombstone glared at the thug, making him shut up as Tombstone let out another sigh, "I know morons like him. He'll keep sniffing around till he finds us. And when he does...I'll take care of it."
"And the Inner Demons?"
Tombstone took one last swig of whiskey before replying, "That's easy. We'll provoke 'em into a fight...and then I'm gonna find their leader and kill 'em."
It took about half an hour for Izuku to get to the bank. When he got there, he found it was covered in yellow police tape, the sight making him blink before turning invisible and zipping over to the building's roof. He crawled down the side at this, seeing the front door was open and snuck in through there. And as he crawled on the bank's ceiling, he saw that the bank was basically empty, no employees inside as officers were walking around, taking photos of the place.
'Looks like they're just starting the investigation. I better not interfere.' He thought as he crawled over the main room, soon going into the back hallway of the bank. There, he saw the safe door, which was open. He peeked inside, seeing that police tape was all over the room and door, and the safe looked half empty. He then went back to the safe door, now seeing large claw marks on the side along with a few other slash marks. 'Oof. Something really tore up the door. Maybe a mutant quirk?'
He watched as the police officers kept taking pictures, some talking about what could have done this. But it was mainly small talk, the teen unable to get much. As such, he invisibly crawled out of the bank the same way he came in and went up to building's roof. He turned off his invisibility at this, the quirk giving him a bit of headache for holding it that long.
'Hmmm...so, it looks like some kind of mutant quirk probably robbed the bank. Those officers were thinking the same thing, but said the place was mostly intact.' He pulled out a notebook at this, this one made for cases. Going to an open section, he began to write his thoughts, 'This bank doesn't have cameras, but it does have an alarm. Those officers said it hadn't gone off, but there's no sign of forced entry, so they must have shut off the alarm somehow.'
He then glanced down at the sides of the building, only to see some more police tape on the back of the bank, along with tape over the building's breaker, and there were no officers around. The back of the bank was in an alleyway, letting him crawl down to get a better view before taking out his notebook again as he stood on the wall, 'The robber took out the breaker, which took out the alarm. Makes sense.' He glanced back at the breaker, seeing the same claw and slash marks on the door. 'It must be a mutant quirk. Though why are there two types of marks?'
He crawled down to street level, making sure not to disturb the tape before glancing around at the ground around the breaker, 'There's nothing else here. Just the marks...wait-' He leaned down at the pavement, seeing a tiny green object by a manhole. 'What's that?'
He crouched down and took out a pair of tweezers, 'Glad I thought of putting a forensics pack in my hoodie a while back.' He picked up the piece in the tweezers before placing it in a small plastic bag. He squinted at the object, scratching his chin at the sight, 'I wonder what you are.'
"Hey, you got any photos of the breaker?" asked a voice, making Izuku tense up before turning invisible. He quickly put his tools back into his hoodie before crawling up the wall, now seeing two officers walk to the back of the bank. One of them had a camera, soon taking several shots of the broken breaker just as Izuku got up to the roof again.
"That was close." he whispered to himself before pulling out the bag again, "Still, I bet you're a clue. And I did say I needed to figure out detective work." He put the bag away before firing a web line, soon swinging away. "Maybe this is a good start to learning that stuff too."