Chapter Text
The building Aizawa lead them to seemed ordinary to the naked eye. If the class had been out and about roaming the city, they would have never looked twice at the boring skyscraper in the center of the busy corporate buildings.
Men and women in suits, carrying overpriced coffee and piles of paperwork rushed past them, not paying the group of students any mind.
Aizawa leads the students inside, and they are quickly shuffled into a large elevator. As the doors close and the machine starts to descend underground, the nervous students finally dare to speak up.
"So, what is this guy like?", Ururaka speaks up, curiosity getting the better of her. "You mentioned he was our age"
"He may be your age, but he is much more cunning and intelligent then any of you brats, so leave the negotiations to me. You are not to speak unless spoken to, got it?", Aizawa points out, and gets grumbles and hesitant agreement in return.
Sighing, Aizawa decides to entertain the kids some more, the elevator ride is after all very long.
"Honestly, I didn't think he would buzz you guys through, but seems like the guy is eager to meet you. Probably wants to just get some new customers."
This has Shinsou nodding. The purple haired boy has been on high alert, ready to absorb everything he can from his mentor. This is, after all, clearly a regular part of the undercover hero's job.
"Tsk! The guy is probably just a shady scammer anyway", Bakugo grumbles.
"The information this man has provided has never led us astray before. If he had wanted us dead, he could have laid out a trap long ago. We have followed him blindly for over a month without casualties.", Aizawa chastises. It is no good to bring the kids with him if they are just going to insult the man. They have a budget to keep to, no matter how desperate the situation is. It's better to keep the seller on their good side.
Finally the elevator slows to a stop, opening up to a large room. The students look around in amazement at the size. The space rivals that of their outdoor training arenas on the school grounds, able to fit entire fake buildings inside it. But unlike the artificial landscapes the kids are used to, the space is filled with rows upon rows of bookshelves that reach towards the ceiling.
"What the fu-", Bakugo blurts out, before being dragged forward by his teacher. "Let go of my, old man!", he then exclaims, ripping his hands out of the others grasp.
As they walk between the scent of parchment and the light of electric bulbs, Shinsou takes a chance to read some of the labels pasted on the bookshelves.
"These notebooks and filing cabinets are organized in a way I can't make any sense of", Hitoshi admits aloud.
At that, Ochako takes a chance to look herself. Corporate studies, embezzlements and affairs, seem to all make sense put together, but then it switches right to specific dates, names and agencies, followed by vigilante movement IV and marketing strategy. It truly made no sense.
"If you want to get out of here alive, I'd recommend not snooping too much. The stuff inside these shelves are his money makers. Reading it constitutes to stealing merchandise", Aizawa warns yet again, making Ururaka swiftly turn away from the shelves, and avoiding eye contact.
After what feels like an eternity, they find an open section, a reading corner, if one is frank. A table set with tea, surrounded by couches and armchairs.
A young man, dressed in a suit, sits leisurely in one of the armchairs, writing in yet another notebook.
Hearing the group approach, he lifts his head in delight.
"Mr. Eraserhead! My favorite client! Who have you brought with you this time, it's so unlike you to bring company", he exclaims, standing up from the couch, hands smoothing down his dress shirt and running through his green locks.
"As if you haven't look at the security footage as we walked in. You wouldn't have let me into the elevator if I dared to bring someone you disapproved of", Aizawa retorts, clearly reminding the boy of the time he had tried bringing All might, failing miserably as they were promptly escorted out before even setting fot inside the elevator.
The green haired boys expression sharpens at the reminder, loosing its childish edge, smirking slightly before turning on his charm yet again to deflect.
"I have no idea what you speak of!", he tells the hero with a grin, "also, that information you asked for during our last private meeting, seems to be in high demand again. I'm afraid I have to up the price on it".
The comment has Aizawa stilling. There had been rumors circulating that his old friends disappearance and death was under investigation again, after a new piece of evidence had reopened the case. It was in no way an urgent one, but Aizawa had been collecting personal funds to soon be able to buy some information himself. It was clear he had upset the boy since said boy had decided to retaliate by pressureing him with the price of said information.
"I understand perfectly, but that is not what we are here for today. We are on official business.", the tired man sighs, retreating back behind the shield of professionalism.
The boy hums happily, trotting up to the new guests.
"Oh my! People my age, what a treat!"
The students look at him with suspicion and silence before Bakugo speaks up.
"D-deku?", he stutters, unable to believe his eyes.
The green haired boy seems to ignore him as he approaches Ochako, reaching out gently for her hand and then bowing down to kiss it softly.
"Izuku Midoriya, glad to make your acquaintance. I'm looking forward to doing business with you.", he greets, winking suggestively as he lifts his head to look the brown haired girl in the eyes.
Ochako, caught off guard by the chivalry, stutters through a greeting of her own before turning away blushing madly.
At that, Izuku turn toward Bakugo, now pale as a sheet with the confirmation of his name.
"Where? Why? How?", the blond asked, growing angrier by the second, but not his usual anger. Something more desperate, more raw.
The green haired boy chuckles at that, shaking his head.
"You couldn't afford the answers to those questions", he says, approaching the other one with slow steps.
Feeling panic wrack his body, Bakugo tries to instinctively blast his quirk at the other, failing to even make a spark.
"Wha-!"
"Quirk disabling barrier. You didn't truly think I'd let an explosion quirk and a fire quirk anywhere near my precious documents?", Izuku mocks.
At that, Bakugo goes on the offensive, taking a swing at the other. The shorter boy ducks, avoiding the swing, using the blonds momentum to slam him to the ground, pinning him down.
As he has the other secured, he leans in close to the other ear, whispering softly so that only they can hear.
"You still are my favorite subject to study, did you know?"
"Let him go", Aizawa demands.
Izuku rolls his eyes, reluctantly letting go of his hostage.
"It was self defense just so you know", Izuku grumbles, as he stands back up.
Izuku knows that he can't take on a martial arts expert like Eraserhead. He only got a one up on Katsuki due to his intimate knowledge on the boy.
As he dusts down his suit, he sees something handed to him in the corner of his eye. He turns to look at Todoroki, who is holding out a black card.
Izuku quirks his eyebrow in question.
"For the info. The Where, Why and How of it all. The ones Bakugo asked", Todoroki says blank faced.
This brings a smile to Izukus face.
"You are speaking my language, Shoto. I think we will be getting along splendidly", he says, grabbing the card.
Todoroki only shrugs.
"It's Endeavors card. Couldn't be more happy to spend his money", he answers, deadpan.
Izuku laughs loudly at the admission.
"Okay then hotshot. You got yourself a deal"
He takes out a card reader from the other side of the table, swiping it, before handing back the black card into the red-and-white haired boys possession.
"The Where, is here, as well as at my Moms. He simply hasn't visited enough for our paths to cross. The Why, is due to many reasons, also being the main reason for the high price. First of all, All Might said that one cannot be a hero without a quirk, so I become something even more powerful. Now I have hero's such as himself eating out of the palm of my hand, begging for an hour of my time. Second was the bullying. I wanted to prove dear Kacchan wrong, didn't I? The How. I was noticed by people who understood my worth. When you can see the things other overlook, people pay good money for it. Both heroes and villains. Both want blackmail, weak spots and strategy defining details, and well... I profit. All those notebooks and years of learning everything about each heroes' and villains' fighting style came in handy after all."
The silence in the room turn suffocating.
"Quirkless?", Shinsou, asks.
Izuku rolls his eyes in frustration. "Why is that always the first thing people point out! Twenty procent of the population is quirkless, why are you surprised? Or do you, just like everyone else, think that a persons entire self worth should be tied to their quirk?"
Hitoshi is about to protest until he decides better of it and stares at the ground in shame.
Izuku stares at the purple haired boy for a moment longer before turning swiftly to face the tired teacher. "Thought so"
Aizawa, having had enough of this chaos, gets straight to the point.
"We need as much information on the league of villains as 2,3 million yen can give us", he deadpans.
Izuku frowns at the number.
"Tough number to work with... especially with an organization as infamous as the LOV...", he mumbles, but it's clear that the mask of bravado has fallen.
Izuku walks briskly down a corridor, the others following him, he pulls files left and right, following a system only he understands.
As they finish their rounds and make their way back to the sofas in the middle of the room. The group plops onto the sofas, watching as the green haired man sifts through files, continuing to mumble incoherently.
"With the budget set, I can give away one first grade piece of information, and 2 second grade pieces of information. I'm sure you know the system by now, Eraser head?", Izuku states, not even looking up into the black haired mans eyes.
At the silence, the young boy lifts his head to look at the guests and finds the other kids thoroughly confused. He smiles in fake apology.
"Yes, of course. The system is the following. A first grade piece of information costs about as much as 3,5 pieces of second grade information, but I usually round it up to 3 for my regulars. The same system follows down the line. If the client would rather have several pieces of less relevant information, they can choose to take the quantity over quality route. I also have 0 grade information, and those have individual prices not fitting the scale. They aren't always more expensive then first grade, but on average, yes, they are. But money isn't always the only way to pay. One can also exchange it with piece of information equivalent in value, although that is a lengthy process."
As the students gape at the absurd prices, Bakugo decides to speak up.
"Have you sold any of my information to people? How much do you charge for it?", he asks nervously.
Looking at his childhood friend, the salesman's face softens.
"I cannot reveal the information on my buyers, but no, I have not sold any of your information. You aren't popular enough yet. However, with how you preformed at the sports festival, I'm sure demand will skyrocket soon enough", Izuku explains calmly, "And so will prices".
Katsuki gulps nervously before crossing his arms over his chest to fain nonchalance.
Paying the two children no mind, Aizawa buts in.
"What do you recommend? We are aware of the basics. Bakugo himself has stated that the three people of most interest is what we can only assume is their boss, a man covered in prostatic hands, a bloodthirsty blond girl and a black haired man wielding fire."
Not giving anything away, Izuku thinks for a moment. Aizawa is smart in using one of the many privileges he gets as a hero client and not as a villain. Only heroes get recommendations before purchase. However, what he doesn't know is that villains also don't get as low prices as he does. With the budget he walked in with, a villain would only get 2 second grade pieces and 1 third grade piece of information.
"I would recommend using your first grade information on the man with a fire quirk. The boss, as you call him, might be interesting to learn more about, but in truth it doesn't serve your purposes much.", he explains nonchalantly.
Aizawa catches onto another hint left by the boy. It's another privilege, an unacknowledged one this time, where Izuku gives out stray pieces of free information when he so pleases.
This time, he let's it slip that the handy man isn't the highest power in the LOV.
"I will follow your advice. First grade on the man with a fire quirk, and second grade information on the other two mentioned"
The green haired boy nods and starts copying down some of the information in the files onto separate paper, where after he stamps it with the company's seal of authenticity, before handing it over in a sealed envelope.
"Pleasure doing business with you once again. You know the rules on large sums?", he asks.
Aizawa sighs. "Yes, I remember. The money will be transferred to your account by and of week". Another privilege that regulars get is trust with large payments. Back a few months ago, the rule would have been two days. For villains, it's end of day, no matter how close to midnight the transaction might be.
"We will be getting out of your hair now. Kids, stand up, we are leaving!"
Izuku watches with a slight frown as the group gathers themselves, preparing to walk out.
A smirk spreads onto his features.
"Actually...", the salesman speaks up.
The group stills at the casual tone, by now having learnt that one should be wary of it.
"I'd like a private discussion with Katsuki, if he would be amendable?", Izuku addresses Aizawa while his eyes don't leave Bakugo's frame.
Aizawa is about to protest before he takes a second to think about it. The two seem to know each other. Bakugo is a boy capable of defending himself and he probably knows the green haired boy better then anyone, including Aizawa himself. If the blond agrees, the teacher sees no reason to refuse.
"Bakugo?", he asks, checking in on the boy.
The kid is tense in the shoulders and doesn't meet his eye, but nods regardless.
The teacher sighs. "Fine. But we will be waiting upstairs. Don't take too long."