BNHA: Undying (Ch 64) (Patreon)

Mirko stands at attention in front of the head of the HPSC, looking straight ahead with a professional air around her. One that’s completely at odds with her thoughts.

Shitty old hag. Why can’t you and the geezers just let me do my job!?

The Rabbit hero had been required to reschedule all of her plans for the day in order to attend the chairwoman’s summons, which means she hasn’t gotten to work through any of the excitement that has built up. It’s even worse since the meeting is at noon, which means it's built up quite a bit.

I better run into someone who can give me a good fight! I had to cancel my meeting with the Twins too!

Yes, Mirko is aware the two are villains. But they also gave her the warning about the attack on the USJ. Which means it’s not out of the realm of possibility that they would be willing to give her even more information, or perhaps even betray the League of Villains. Even if they aren’t, having a reliable source of information in the underworld is a useful tool for any successful hero.

Of course… that’s not quite why she wanted a meeting.

I was really looking forward to another threesome!

…

After leaving the hero standing for a suitable amount of time to feed her ego, the chairwoman speaks. “We are given to understand that you have a connection to this… League of Villains, that attacked UA.”

Mirko shrugs, not deigning to answer the unspoken question. The chairwoman’s eyebrow twitches before she continues. “When did you encounter them, and why were they not arrested then?”

Now that she's been directly asked, she needs to answer. So with a lazy drawl, she gives a brief overview of how she met the Usagi twins. “Some brat threw a water balloon at my face, so I chased them down. When I caught them their friend showed up and told me that ‘The League of Villains is targeting UA’, since All Might works there now. They vanished through a warp quirk before I could question them further.”

…Very brief.

The chairwoman’s stern expression doesn’t change. “Why not arrest them and question them at the police station? That would have prevented their escape.”

Mirko deadpans at the woman. “The hell was I supposed to know they were villains? We both know it’s not exactly uncommon for someone to throw something at a hero in that city.”

The chairwoman maintains a glare before letting out a huff of dissatisfaction. “Very well. Thankfully, this does open up certain… possibilities.”

“Oh?” One of Mirko’s ears twitches at the chairwoman’s tone, curious where this is going. Seeing that she finally has her attention the chairwoman letsout an internal sigh. She hates working with the more willful heroes.

“It seems to me that you have a, if not positive, at least neutral relationship with the League of Villains. Would that be accurate?”

Mirko thinks back on the single interaction she had with them before the USJ, and the wide, wide variety of things they did. She holds back a smirk as she replies, “You could say that.”

The chairwoman nods in satisfaction, a small smile appearing on her face. “That puts you in a position where you can get in their good graces. Where you can earn their trust. Where you can… infiltrate their organization.”

Mirko blinks, her mouth opening and closing a few times at the unexpected claim. Or rather, at what her orders are. Eventually though, she speaks three simple words. A question, really.

“Are you stupid?”

`~`

I scream as the scalpel slides under my fingernail, becoming a lever they use to peel it off, the connecting skin snapping as the nail slowly, oh so slowly, rises. It feels like it takes forever, an eternity before it snaps off, the scalpel digging deeper into my flesh all the while. It retracts, the person holding it-

“Blegh!”

-throwing up in the trashcan next to us.

“Fuck this! It’s fuckin disgusting!”

“Oh come on Skyfall, you’ve barely started! You can’t call a few scratches and a single fingernail revenge torture.”

“Those ain’t scratches you fucking psycho!”

I roll my eyes, taking another sip of my orange juice, eliciting an even louder yell from the newest member of the League of Villains. “And who the fuck drink fuckin juice while they’re being tortured!?”

I shrug, making a popping sound as I take my mouth off the straw. “I mean, I at least screamed for you, so that’s something. Probably.”

“It’s not!”

Welp. It seems that this was a bad idea. Or at least not a good one. I mentally cross out ‘Let Skyfall do whatever she wants’ off my to-do list as she storms out of the room.

Apparently she doesn’t have a mindset for torture, even if she wants to hurt the other person. For anyone curious, this was supposed to be where Skyfall gets her revenge on me for the burn scars she has. But… other than stabbing me a few times, she really couldn’t do any actual torture. Still, it’s good to know that, while she has no trouble killing someone, she won’t take satisfaction from causing other people pain.

Well, fake pain in my case, but potato tomato.

But as I look around the room, I realize just how insidious her revenge really is!

See, the stab wounds are deep, and scattered across my body. Which means there’s a lot of blood. Blood which has leaked onto the floor.

And Mamagiri told us that he wants the room clean after we’re done. Which Skyfall would have taken care of since we were originally going to torture me to death. But now…

“Clever girl.” I mutter as I grab my clothes off the rack they’re hanging from and use them to wrap my wounds as best I can.

I’ll get in even more trouble if I leave blood trails all over the base looking for cleaning supplies.

`~`

“You seem… dissatisfied, Tomura.”

“Hmm? I guess.”

All For One frowns at his protege. Usually he is one to air his grievances without hesitation, often referring to the problem in question as a glitch or bug, in accordance with his interest in video games. But now, when directly questioned he avoids clarifying? Quite odd.

He maintains his attention on the boy, and eventually he groans, pausing his game as he turns to give his sensei his full attention. He huffs out a breath, his hand twitching towards his neck before clenching his fingers and crossing his arms. “It’s just… The League is mine.”

If All For One had eyebrows, he would be raising one. “Yes? That is correct.”

Seeing that he doesn’t understand, Tomura lets out another huff before clarifying. “I’m the leader of the League, but Midosagi acts like he’s in charge. It pisses me off.”

“Oh?” All For One is surprised by the claim, for this is the first he’d heard of it. But perhaps Tomura is simply blowing things out of proportion, as he tends to do? He folds his arms across his chest before beginning his questions. “Has he attempted to subvert your control?”

“No.” Tomura growls out the answer.

Hmm. Perhaps this, then? “He has implied you are not fit to lead, or expressed a desire to lead in your place?”

Tomura’s growled reply is deeper this time, his arms tightening. “No.”

Quite the predicament… All For One muses, tilting his head upwards as he wonders how, exactly, the conundrum of a boy, acts as the leader. He motions for Tomura to speak, and he does. But he gestures uncertainly while attempting to vocalize his emotions.

“He… It’s… I’m the leader. That means I’m the one who makes the decisions. I decide what we do, when we do it, and how we do it.” All For One nods, each of the points  being accurate. At least now that he no longer wishes to transfer his mind to Tomura’s body. A consequence of his-

Ah.

All For One suddenly understands, but lets Tomura continue speaking, hoping that he will realize it on his own. “I’m the leader, so I decide who gets to join. But he just picked up another random for the party and didn’t even ask me!”

“You were aware that the girl joining was the plan, though, correct? If you had reservations, why did you not speak them while she was being treated?”

“I don’t mind her joining,” Tomura waves the contradiction off easily. “It’s just…” He falls silent, unsure of how to say it. Seeing his difficulty, All For One does it for him.

“You feel that he is doing more than you.”

“Yes!” Tomura shouts, throwing his hands up in the air. “He recruited two people, and we got stuck with what he wanted to do at the USJ because he killed the Nomu! Meanwhile, what have I done!? I broke into the school so we knew where to attack, but that’s it!”

“Hmm.” So, it is simply that he does not see his own potential. A fault I caused, unfortunately. “You have done more than you believe.”

“What, then?” He snaps, and All For One is unsure of how to feel with the more…casual…way he speaks to him. No reverence, no awe. More like an acquaintance.

Or a son.

He ignores the intrusive thought, simply listing out Tomura’s own accomplishments. “As you said, you obtained the information that allowed the attack to occur. While the Nomu failed in combat against the boy, that only means that it would have failed against All Might as well. It is no loss, and certainly not a failure of yours.”

The two hundred year old man lets his mind drift back to that day, to what feels like long ago but was only a year. “You say Izuku recruited two people to the League, but so did you. You recruited Izuku and Himiko Toga, so their accomplishments are yours.”

Tomura waves the claim away. “They literally walked into the bar on their own. I had nothing to do with that.”

“Incorrect. You showed that your instincts were accurate in identifying opportunities you could take advantage of to grow your power. Many others would have simply dismissed the two of them as mad and washed their hands of the headaches the duo would cause them.”

“They are a pain in the ass.” Tomura nods in agreement.

“They may have brought Stain to our hideout, but it was because you informed them that you wished to recruit him. It was not them who spoke to him, offering benefits for cooperation.”

“That failed though. Bastard stabbed me.”

“But you did not falter. Even wounded, you remained calm and collected, and you put him on the back foot. You did not earn his loyalty, but you earned his respect. Not an easy thing, from what is said.”

I pause, letting him digest the information before moving on to the most salient point, one he has completely overlooked. “But what you have failed to realize, is that you have obtained Izuku’s loyalty.”

He does not understand, not truly. But that is why All For One is here, to guide him. “The Usagi are mad, there is no doubt about that.” He nods in understanding. “But they are loyal to each other, to those they consider family. In this case, that means you.”

He opens his mouth to object, but All For One pushes past it. “You have interacted with them on a daily basis, and you have all seen each other at your best, and worst. Had they not considered you family, had they not been loyal to you, I have no doubt that they would have already abandoned the League in order to pursue the life of freedom they both desire.”

He pauses. “But they have not. Instead, they have chosen to tie themselves to you, to the League of Villains. You have earned their loyalty, something that even I likely would have had difficulties with. And that, Tomura, is where your influence grows from.”

His brows furrow, and I sigh. “You do not understand, and that is acceptable. You will understand one day. Just know that while fear is a useful tool, it is loyalty that will carry you to heights far past what you imagined.”

`~`

“I can’t believe she hasn’t called!” Inko Yagi complains to her acquaintance at a little cafe. “She got moved into the dorms a week and a half ago, and she hasn’t called a single time! What kind of daughter leaves her mother to worry like this?”

Her acquaintance nods understandingly, taking a sip from her strawberry lemonade. “Completely ridiculous.”

“I know!” Inko throws her head back as she tosses her more alcoholic beverage down in a single gulp, signaling for another from a grumpy waiter. “Honestly, it’s all because of that quirkless. It would have been better if they were never born.”

Her drinking partner makes some vague noises while taking another sip.

Inko throws her arm around the other woman, not noticing the way her nose crinkles. “You get it! Honestly, I have no idea why it’s such a big deal that some villain who looks like that trash died. They were a villain!”

Another vague noise before they finally speak. “Yeah… If they had a good quirk they could have been a hero. Good quirks are what really matters, don’t you agree?”

Inko beams at her, plopping back into her seat as the waiter brings her drink, snatching it out of his hand with barely a glance. “You do get it!” She looks around, not so subtly eyeing the waiter before he leaves, then leans in close. The other woman tries not to flinch at the foul stench of alcohol coating her breath. “Hey… I have some friends who I think you’d get along with. Want to meet them?”

The other woman smiles, at odds with the abject disgust in her eyes as she looks at the green-haired woman. “I think that I basically have to. I’m very interested in learning more about you. And these friends of yours.”