Chapter Text
Patrolling was probably one of Izuku’s favorite parts of being a hero.
It was a simple task, really. Izuku would walk along his assigned area, sometimes with a partner, sometimes on his own, and provide a calming presence for the civilians around him. There wasn’t always a lot of action, but Izuku didn’t mind that. Sure, he got antsy to fight sometimes. However, he was also relieved when he would end with an uneventful patrol, just happy that the world was safe. Even if it was just one day. One day of peace was better than none at all. Considering the chaos his profession brought about on the daily from the moment he entered UA, Izuku could appreciate some quiet.
Izuku had been assigned a portion of downtown Musustafu to watch over and protect. He didn’t have a partner, but he didn’t mind it. Sometimes it was nicer to be alone with his thoughts as he walked around the blocks in his hero uniform. He had already been stopped for pictures earlier in the day, and people tended to leave him be in the night as the crowd became sparser and sparser. Don’t be fooled, Izuku loved meeting his fans. No matter how much of a mess he looked, he could easily fall into a bright smile for the sake of one photo. But, sometimes he needed a break and he didn’t want pictures of him sweating from walking around the block for hours or him grimy from a fight in the alleyway circulating online with captions like, “He’s so tired :((“ or “My sweet bb”.
To occupy himself, Izuku took to kicking a rock and trying to keep it from going into a gutter. He allowed his thoughts to wander a bit as it got closer to 2 a.m. What was he going to eat when he got home? His mom had dropped off a pork katsudon earlier that day that was practically begging to be eaten. He didn’t have time to eat it when it was given to him, so instead it sat in his apartment’s refrigerator in a glass tupperware with a red lid. Yeah, he definitely had to eat that as soon as possible.
All the thoughts about food made Izuku’s stomach growl. Why wait to eat? He recognized that he was close to a gas station, so he followed a familiar path and popped into the convenience store. With a grin to the cashier, he walked to the back of the small store to get himself a slushie. Deciding what flavor he wanted seemed to be a bigger challenge than he anticipated. He wasn’t exactly a slushie purist like his friend Hitoshi was, so he was trying to figure out what combination of colors would make him happiest. After about a minute of consideration, Izuku opted to mix cherry and blue raspberry.
The bell above the entrance rang to signal someone had entered the convenience store. Izuku paused. He tried to feel for any spike in Danger Sense, but it remained at its smooth buzz in the back of his mind. He turned to see the individual walk to the cashier. From their build, Izuku could assume it was a male about his age. He was dressed head to toe in black, bulky clothes with the only exclusion being his light blue Converse. They were dirty and well loved and Izuku could tell there was an embroidered design on the side of them, but he couldn’t tell what exactly it was. The man had his hood up so Izuku couldn’t see his face.
Before the man could say anything, Izuku’s watch and phone beeped to signal an emergency alert.
[2:36 AM] WARNING: VILLAIN ON THE LOOSE IN YOUR AREA
HEROES AND LOCAL AUTHORITIES HAVE BEEN INFORMED AND ARE HERE TO TAKE CARE OF YOU. INDIVIDUAL IS ROUGHLY 5’11 MALE WEARING A BLACK HOODIE, BLACK PANTS, AND A BLUE KABUKI MASK. QUIRK IS CURRENTLY UNKNOWN. IF SPOTTED, CONTACT LOCAL AUTHORITIES IMMEADIATELY AND HIDE. STAY INDOORS AND DO NOT LET ANY UNKNOWN PERSONS IN YOUR HOME.
Definitely the man in front of him. The cashier glanced at her phone and Izuku watched as recognition appeared on her face. As she was about to say something, or maybe just scream, the man pulled out a gun from his pocket and pointed it at her forehead.
“Do not say a word.” The man’s distorted voice instructed. He must have a voice changer in that mask, then. His voice had a faint buzz behind it and it was an annoyingly high pitch that made Izuku want to destroy the mask.
Without any thought, One for All came to life around Izuku as he quickly went in front of the man to stand between the woman and the gun. Izuku smiled and reached up to grab the gun, “Hi.” He said simply before knocking the gun out of his hand and bringing his hand up to punch the villain’s jaw.
The man cursed and quickly ducked to avoid the impact, glancing around to find an escape. He quickly lunged to the side to grab the gun again but Izuku quickly used Black Whip to drag him back towards him. Danger Sense still didn’t kick in and Izuku was starting to worry that his quirk was damaged or something.
“Are you a 5’11 villain? I’m supposed to arrest you.” Izuku asked, moving his gaze from the man that was writhing under his hold to watch the woman run off into the back room. There was probably a back exit she was taking, right? That sounded right.
The man continued to try and escape with a growl, “Fuck off!” He yelled. Suddenly, black whip froze over. Izuku’s quirk fizzled unstably at the sudden temperature change and a shiver ran over his body. So he had an ice quirk? Izuku tried to think of any known villains with an ice quirk, but none immediately came to his head. This must just be a petty criminal then.
Using Izuku’s shock as an advantage, the man managed to escape his bounds. He scampered to his feet and glanced around to find something, the gun, if Izuku had to guess. Izuku remembered Gran Torino and the tricks he had taught him and he felt Cowling buzz around him. Before the man could think, Izuku jumped to the wall of the convenience store and charged at him with the intent to knock the man over and straddle him in place. The man quickly moved out of the way, watching Izuku intently as he continued to jump all around him. Green electricity whizzed past the man in a pattern that Izuku realized he was predicting. That’s not good.
Izuku got on the ceiling and slammed down, which the man quickly avoided by diving out of the way. The hero sighed, “You’re making this really hard.” He stated, swinging his fist at the villain.
The villain scoffed, catching his fist, “Oh boo-hoo.” The high pitched voice responded. Izuku reached his leg up and kicked the villain at his side, causing him to grunt and stumble a bit. The man reached into one of the pockets in his cargo pants and pulled out a knife. Before Izuku could try to disarm him, he swung it at Izuku’s face in an attempt to slice his cheek. Luckily, Izuku had the instinct to back away as the man continued to swing and back him into the wall. One for All appeared around Izuku again as he became trapped between the villain and the wall, and the villain held the knife to his throat and used an arm to push against his chest.
But Danger Sense never kicked in.
Izuku panted, staring into the blank eyes of the blue kabuki mask. Its features were similar to that of a cat, with an outline of a white curved mouth and white whiskers on the blue base. With the man so close, Izuku could hear his distorted breathing against the voice changer inside and he grew curious of what his real voice must sound like. Maybe it was deeper if he was trying to make it higher and undistinguishable. Izuku glanced down at the knife and looked back at the villain, danger sense still remaining calm at the back of his mind.
“You don’t want to hurt me.” Izuku said, staring at the villain.
The man growled and his high pitched mask yelled, “Shut up, hero! I could slice your throat! Right now!” Izuku noticed how the man’s finger was providing a barrier between his neck and the blade, and he questioned the validity of that statement.
“But you won’t .” Izuku reiterated. “You’re weak and you don’t want to hurt me like you think you do.”
The man was about to respond, probably with another bark at him, but Izuku quickly reached up and grabbed his wrist. His fingernails clawed at the black sleeve and Izuku pushed him back, freeing his arm. Before the man could retaliate, Izuku struck out his elbow and knocked into the temple of the man. He could hear the garbled gasp that he let out and an unsettling crack of plastic as the villain stumbled.
Izuku looked up in confusion at the crack before noticing the large schism across the kabuki mask. It started from the point where his elbow had hit and reached to the nose of the cat’s face. He shouldn’t feel bad for messing the disguise up, but seeing the way the man’s hand shakily went up to feel the fission made a pang of guilt strike Izuku’s stomach. He couldn’t let that hinder him for too long though. Before Izuku could dwell further on the symbolism behind him cracking the stranger’s mask, the villain charged forward with a growl and swiped at him.
There Danger Sense was.
Izuku tried to move back but the villain was furiously swiping the dagger in the air until it finally reached Izuku’s skin. The villain slashed a cut right across the bridge of Izuku’s nose and he faintly wondered if it went across the two intersecting scars that spread across it already. Just like that, Danger Sense faded away as if the man wavered back to having no intention of hurting Izuku. Why did he keep doing that? They were on opposite teams, what was holding him back? Izuku never thought he would yearn for his opponent to hurt him, to strike him with reckless abandon. He was confused at the frustration he felt. What was holding the villain back ?
Izuku was about to strike, to lash out, to retaliate for the only injury he had to show for this fight, but familiar blue and red lights reflected through the windows of the convenience store with blaring sirens. Shoot, he had gotten distracted. He had to bound up the man, tie him up in some kind of way to help the police, where had his handcuffs gon-
A smoke bomb. Really? Izuku fell into a coughing fit as smoke filled the store and set off the fire alarm. It was thick and heavy and he briefly wondered if the villain had made it himself considering the power and the smell . Izuku wretched and pulled his mask over his mouth as the smoke invaded his senses, making his eyes and nose burn. When had he even dropped it? Of course, the villain was able to sneak off through the same back way the worker from before had gone.
The man got away.
Izuku pushed the door of the convenience store open as he continued to choke on the dense smoke of the trick. Police quickly ran to his side as he fell to his hands and knees to gather himself, breathing in the fresh air and trying not to hack up a lung. That villain had to have made that, there was no way it was from a firework store or something. If those horrible smoke bombs were being sold on the market for anyone to get their hands on, he was going to need some sort of gas mask. Izuku made a mental note to bring that up to Mei next time he met with her about his costume. And maybe Detective Tsukauchi.
“Deku! Are you alright?” One of the police ran up to him in concern, her brown ponytail swinging behind her.
“Fine.” Izuku almost didn’t recognize his own voice from how gruff it was. He got up to his feet and took a deep breath, just making sure that he could safely get air in and out. “He got away.” Izuku said with a frown, looking back at the gas station. The smoke was spreading out into the early morning air, but it wasn’t as suffocating now that it wasn’t in the condensed area.
The policewoman pulled out a notepad while her comrades went to inspect the inside of the store with masks on. “He’s a slippery one. This is the third encounter we’ve had with that guy in a month.”
“What has he done in the past?” Izuku asked, letting his hands rest on his belt.
“Nothing big, really. The first time we saw him he was messing with the wires of this random cafe- Or maybe it was a bookstore? We weren’t able to question him about it because he got away so quick, like he disappeared or something. We questioned the owner of the shop the next day, but he said that there was nothing wrong with his breaker box and that his security cameras didn’t show that area.”
Izuku tried to think of a reason a villain would attack a cafe-bookstore owner’s breaker box. Was he trying to shut off the power? Distract the owner while he went to steal some books or coffee? Why would he want to steal books or coffee?
“What shop was it?” Izuku asked.
The woman thought for a moment, “I can’t remember the street off the top of my head. It’s over by that big Attorney’s office? Right next to the deli. It’s called Book Lover’s or something.”
Izuku hummed. Noted.
“The second time,” The woman continued, effectively breaking Izuku out of his thoughts, “he was fighting with a man in an alleyway. The dude he was fighting with got away as soon as he saw us pull up, but Kabuki was just standing there. He was staring at where the other guy had run off and he only moved when one of the police went to ask him what was wrong. He fought off one of our best officers on the scene and was gone before the guy could even call for more backup.”
Oh, so he did fight people. He just didn’t have any ill intent when he was fighting Izuku? That didn’t seem right. Why would the man fight some random person?
“And the third time was today.” The woman frowned and looked at her notepad. “Someone called us because they saw him walking around with that gun in his pocket. He was in an alleyway, once again, and he looked injured. We tried to sneak up on him but he heard us and managed to get away. That’s when we sent out the alert since we knew he was armed and that’s where you came in. Think you could tell me your side of the story?”
Izuku went on to explain how he was on patrol and just wanted to get a snack. The slushie he had abandoned came to the front of his mind, but he worried that it would be spoiled from the weird gas the man had unleashed upon the store. He further explained how the villain came in, pointed the gun at the cashier, and that Izuku stepped in before anything could happen. He gave every detail, the man’s evasiveness against his attacks, the split in his mask, the lack of Danger Sense, the moment of cold that showed the man had an ice quirk. Everything he could offer. The policewoman read her notes back to him to confirm them, and Izuku was sent on his way back to his home.
But he couldn’t get that villain out of his head. Was the man even a villain? His past offenses were so… odd. What could he possibly have been doing messing with a random shop’s breaker box? Izuku briefly wondered if the man was educated when it came to engineering or if he was just trying to shut off the power by ripping out wires with reckless abandon. And who could he have been fighting? Did he actually have intent to hurt that man? Izuku hoped it wasn’t some random person off the street, but it made me question who it could’ve been even further. Maybe a fellow villain? Or a hero of some sort? No, not a hero. It was someone who needed to run away, to escape the police. And finally, why was the man walking around with a gun in his pocket? Why didn’t he use that gun on Izuku? Izuku was tempted to pride himself and take the credit saying that he simply did a good job of keeping the gun from the man, but he wasn’t sure if that was true. The truth was that if it was truly a loaded gun, the man wouldn’t have carried it with such ease. Izuku would’ve felt some kind of danger sense if there was a real weapon around him. Even if it wasn’t targeted towards him, he knew when there was something to worry about. So was the gun even loaded?
Izuku reached up and brushed his fingers along the large slice across his nose bridge. He winced. Even if the gun wasn’t loaded, the man still had a knife that he willingly used on Izuku. That was the only time he didn’t hold back, the only time Izuku felt a spike in the faint buzz in his head to be cautious. And the man did hurt him. But he seemed to immediately regret the cut. Was it because he knew he’d get in trouble for hurting someone? Did he actually feel shame after hurting Izuku? Why would he attack someone with no intention to hurt them?
Izuku locked the door behind him as he entered his apartment. He kicked off his shoes by the door and hung up his keys before stepping further into his home. It was a basic floor plan with a kitchen immediately to his left with a small breakfast bar that separated it from his dining table and living room. The only unique part of his apartment was that one of his walls was entirely made of glass that allowed him to see a panoramic view of the entire city. One of his favorite things was to sit in front of it with his morning coffee and watch the civilians below, thinking about the people he worked so hard to protect.
At the moment, however, Izuku only had two things on his mind: His mother’s katsudon waiting for him in the fridge and that villain.
He really didn’t understand why he was so hung up on the random guy. Izuku decided to blame it on his need to save everyone he comes in contact with. There was something different about this villain, and Izuku needed to know what it was. Or he needed to know if he was just losing his grip on reality and reaching for something that wasn’t truly there. Izuku sighed and stared at the katsudon he had heated up. He had a day off tomorrow, and he knew just the place he was going to spend it.
The Book Cafe was a small shop that occupied the corner of a fairly busy street. The exterior was black with framed windows on each side of the door, which showed a glimpse of the inside. The title of the store was in a classic professional font in gold letters that contrasted with the darkness of the building's features, and the only real pop of color was the greenery growing on the window sill of the upper floor of the bookstore. It was a bit overgrown with vines spilling out of the clay pot they were planted in, but it went with the odd aesthetic of the shop as a whole. Overall, it looked like any classic book or poetry lover’s dream spot.
Izuku walked into the store with his civilian clothes on and smiled at the sound of a bell ringing above his head. He took in the sight of the cafe where a few people were sitting and either quietly reading or drinking coffee. There was a college student working on her laptop with two seperate mugs of coffee almost empty, a man reading an older, weathered book in a corner, and a couple quietly chatting with lingering touches and soft smiles. There was a staircase near the main bar of the cafe that led to the second story. The second story’s walls were lined with bookshelves filled to the brim with novels and textbooks and any kind of literature Izuku could’ve imagined. Izuku was in awe of the building until he turned and saw him .
Standing behind the counter with a book in his hand was one of the most attractive people Izuku had ever seen. The man was tall, maybe around 6’ foot, with long, shaggy black hair that casted a shadow over his eyes. He was in a beige turtleneck and a black apron with a small gold name tag and as Izuku stepped closer, he was able to read ‘Hanako’ on it. When the man looked up to greet him, Izuku’s mouth went dry as he took in a more detailed view of his features. His face was soft but his jaw was sharp, and his lips were slightly parted to begin to ask Izuku a question. He had a silver hoop on the middle of his bottom lip and Izuku swore he could see a tattoo beginning to peek through the man’s collar.
However, the most striking feature of them all was the black eyepatch that covered Hanako’s left eye.
Izuku almost didn’t notice it at first because of his dark hair, but when Hanako’s gray eye met his own, he was quick to realize it was there. Izuku was curious about it, but he knew better than to ask. He did wonder if it had to do with the man’s quirk, though. Old habits, he supposed.
“Hello. What can I get you?”
Holy shit, his voice . It was deep and smooth and a blush formed on Izuku’s face. It was so soft and shy and Izuku wanted to fall to his knees. However, that would be very inappropriate for a coffee shop book store, so he kept himself standing and smiled back. “Um, I’ll take a latte.”
The man hummed and tapped it onto the iPad in front of him. “Anything else?” He asked with his head still ducked, glancing up at Izuku through his eyelashes. They were thick and dark but Izuku recognized that the man must have been wearing that makeup Uraraka and the girls in his agency wear. Mascara maybe?
Izuku blushed at the thought of the man staring at himself in the mirror, using the twisty brush Ochako did to carefully apply the makeup to his eyelashes. And mascara could do some things, but from how thick the man’s lashes were, Izuku had to assume they were already pretty and long and-
Wait, did he ask him something? Izuku realized he had been staring at the guy’s eye for an uncomfortably long amount of time. Hanako stared at him with a blank expression but his lips were pressed in a tight line that hinted that Izuku was not the only one feeling awkwardness. The hero quickly spoke up once again, “N-no! Sorry- I have a lot on my mind.” Like what other makeup you wear . “Do you by chance know the owner of this place?”
The man lifted his head for a moment and Izuku bit his lip as he grew even more nervous. Hanako cleared his throat and looked back down at the screen. “Yes. I own this store.”
He owned the store? But he looked so young! Izuku had considered that Hanako was maybe the son of the owner or a student fresh out of college needing a job to occupy the time. Izuku panicked for a second, worried that the man would see the confusion on his face. “O-oh! Sorry, I should’ve realized- This place just seems so successful and I thought you were younger than me so I figured you were just working here, but wow you’re the owner! Congratulations, I mean, this place looks great!” Izuku laughed nervously and wished that an earthquake would hit and make the building collapse on top of him.
Hanako gave him an odd look, “Thank you.” He replied, but he didn’t really sound like he meant it. The more Izuku spoke to him, the shorter his responses were. That wasn’t good.
“Of course! Well, um. Since you’re the owner, could I have a moment with you? To talk. I just need to ask you some stuff- Oh, uh, I’m Deku, by the way. The hero.” Izuku wanted to die. He wanted to wilt into the ground and join the earth so he would never have to look this man in the eye again.
“I know who you are.” Hanako replied, tapping the screen once and turning the screen towards Izuku. He finally made eye contact and Izuku almost shivered at how intense his gaze was. “May I ask what this concerns? As far as I know, I haven’t broken any laws.”
Izuku smiled gently, looking down at the screen as he used his card to pay. The tip had automatically been on 0% when the screen was turned to him, which Izuku quickly changed to be double the price of his coffee. “No, of course not. I just want to talk to you about the other night. We can discuss it further when we’re in private.”
Hanako’s face remained stoic but Izuku noticed the way his eyebrows furrowed slightly. Did Hanako know what he was talking about? He seemed confused. Hanako looked at the screen and quickly looked back up at Izuku, one of his eyebrows lifted ever so slightly. Izuku just gave him a cheeky grin and walked to the other side of the counter to wait for his latte.
Izuku watched the way Hanako handled the espresso machine with ease and care, like it was second nature. While the shots poured themselves, Hanako steamed and frothed some milk, not even looking to see when the shots were done. All of his movements were smooth and graceful and Izuku didn’t realize he could be so impressed with someone doing something as simple as making coffee. The man handled himself with more grace than some pro heroes he knew, including himself. He watched as Hanako carefully poured the steamed milk into a mug and placed the latte onto a small plate before sliding it to Izuku.
The surface of his coffee mimicked a white leaf over a brown background that Hanako must have made with the way he poured in the milk. Izuku stared in awe at the precision and tried to follow the movement of the latte art as if he could ever read the way Hanako had poured.
Izuku looked up at Hanako, who still wore an indifferent expression. and smiled brightly, “This is beautiful! How did you learn to make something like this?”
If Hanako had any reaction to the compliment, he didn’t show it. Instead, he glanced over at the cash register and looked back at Izuku. “I spend a lot of time here. There’s a room in the back we can go to so you can interrogate me. Follow me.”
Izuku sputtered at the bluntness of the man in front of him, but he quickly (and very carefully!) picked up his plate with his latte on it and followed Hanako. Like the man had said, he led him into a back room with not much going on. Walking into the room, Izuku smelled a faint hint of cigarette smoke coming from an ash tray that he tried not to grimace at. There were lots of boxes lining the walls and a small light on the ceiling that flickered on after a two second delay when Hanako flipped the switch. There was a small couch with pillows and a thin blanket draped over its back and a small coffee table with what he assumed was Hanako’s mail scattered around.
“I apologize for the mess,” Hanako sighed, sitting down on the couch with that same grace he seemed to carry in everything he did. “Please, sit.”
Izuku smiled and gently placed the latte on the table to ensure he wouldn’t make a mess on the scattered mail. He made a note of the full name and address on one of the envelopes. Hanako Kaito .
As he sat down, Izuku reached into his pocket and pulled out a tape recorder. It was pretty antiquated after many years of love, but it still worked, so Izuku figured he could get some use out of it. Hanako eyed it wearily and looked back at Izuku for some kind of explanation.
Izuku was quick to deliver with an easy going grin, “It’s just to prove the validity of what I take from this. Are you okay with being recorded?”
He didn’t miss the way Hanako hesitated, staring at the tape recorder like it was a weapon Izuku was threatening him with, but the man across from him still nodded and sat with perfect posture on the couch. Izuku pressed the proper button and the familiar click sounded to signal that it was recording.
“Okay. Please state your full name for the record.”
Hanako answered smoothly, “Hanako Kaito.”
“Nice to meet you, Hanako. Do you have a quirk?” Izuku hated that he had to ask, but it was a requirement. He needed to know if Hanako had a quirk that could affect his memory or his tone or anything about how he told the story, or if he would be able to convince Izuku anything he told him with some kind of mind control, or-
“No.”
Izuku tried to disguise his shock with a hum. Being quirkless was so rare nowadays. He couldn’t help but feel a slight rush at finding out there was another person his age who didn’t have one. Izuku wondered if they could’ve been friends when they were kids. Instead of asking, Izuku nodded and continued, “So, I’m here to talk to you about a villain encounter that you had recently, about two weeks ago? Could you tell me about it?”
Hanako paused to think and Izuku began to consider if the man even remembered it or not. People didn’t usually forget villain encounters so easily, especially if they were as odd as his.
Before Izuku could further ponder it, Hanako spoke up. “I suppose you mean the man with the power box?” Izuku nodded eagerly and Hanako continued, “I’ve already given my statement to the police. Isn’t that enough?”
So Hanako was a lot more clever than he seemed. Izuku tried not to let his nerves show under the man’s intense stare as he replied, “The villain who visited you has been resurging recently. The police asked me to come and make sure we had all the details about him that you could provide.”
The lie came out easier than Izuku expected, but he still felt slightly bad. But he couldn’t tell Hanako that he was there purely because of his own curiosity and was not, in fact, sent by any police.
With the same unimpressed expression, Hanako leaned back into the couch. “I told them everything. I had just closed the shop when I heard some noise outside. I walked out and there he was. Dressed in all black with a blue kabuki mask and messing with my power box. He ran away at the sound of my door and I haven’t seen him since.”
The story was short and sweet, but it seemed practiced. Like Hanako had been rehearsing. “Can I see your power box?” Hanako forwent the stoic expression to stare at Izuku like he was an idiot instead. Izuku kept eye contact, refusing to bow down to the man in front of him. He wasn’t sure why Hanako was being so curt about his experience, but Izuku knew he had to get some kind of information from him.
Hanako continued to give him an incredulous look as he montonely asked, “Why do you want to see the power box? I fixed it weeks ago.”
Izuku calmly explained himself, “I want to see where it is to get a better understanding of the situation. May I see it?”
Hanako narrowed his eyes and simply stood up with Izuku quickly following behind him. The taller man walked to the back door that led to a small alley on the side of the building. It was lined with a few dumpsters, but right beside the door was the power box. Hanako stood beside it and gestured for Izuku to look, “It’s nothing special. Just a power box.”
Izuku assessed the situation, trying to imagine himself as Hanako. He had been very close to the villain if Kabuki had actually been at the power box when Hanako said he had. Had Hanako seen any other defining features of him then? There were no cameras around, which Izuku made note to fix. Izuku tried to map out the route Kabuki could have taken. How had Kabuki escaped? If Hanako was this close, he could’ve just grabbed him or easily chased after him. Why hadn’t he? Izuku frowned as he made himself remember that Hanako wasn’t a hero who might have had the same drive to stop evil like he did. He probably thought it would be irrational to try to apprehend a villain on his own. For a civilian, that was a completely sane thought.
Izuku turned back to Hanako, who was standing in the doorway with his shoulder pressed to the door to hold it open. His arms were crossed and he was watching Izuku carefully, like he was observing a wild animal in its natural habitat. Izuku briefly wondered if he shared the same look. “You didn’t happen to see him use any kind of quirk, did you? Or did he have any unique characteristics that could be from a quirk?”
Hanako paused for a moment to consider Izuku’s words, his gaze falling down as he thought. “No, I didn’t see him use anything. If he was messing with my power box, he probably has an electricity quirk.” He looked back up at Izuku with a slight shrug.
So Hanako truly didn’t know anything about the man. Izuku remembered the feeling of ice against Black Whip and the shiver it left down his spine. Definitely not electricity related, but Hanako’s theory was a valid one. Though a good idea, that didn’t answer any of his questions, and Izuku was led back to his biggest query at the moment: What did Kabuki need with a random book cafe’s power box?
“Your latte’s going to get cold.” Hanako’s voice broke Izuku out of his thoughts once more and he looked back up at the man. Izuku was probably making a weird face at him because Hanako raised an eyebrow, “You paid triple the price for that coffee. Aren’t you going to drink it?”
Izuku perked up, “Oh! Uh, yeah, I suppose I should. We can keep talking inside.” He smiled sheepishly, realizing that Hanako must have been getting cold from standing in the January weather for so long.
Hanako held the door open for him as Izuku walked back into the building. He sat back down on the couch as Hanako locked the door once again and this time, Izuku grabbed his latte to gently take a sip of it. Izuku brightened at the taste and he looked up at Hanako, “It’s really good! What kind of brew do you use?”
Hanako walked back to the couch and raised an eyebrow, “I can’t tell you that, I’ll go out of business.”
Izuku laughed, taking another sip and placing the mug gently back onto its plate. He wiped away the foam mustache he was sure he had and looked back at Hanako. “Okay, back to serious. So you don’t remember any specifics of the man, just that he was tall with a blue kabuki mask and all black clothes, and he was messing with your power box with what you assumed to be an electricity quirk?”
Hanako nodded along to what Izuku said to confirm it and Izuku frowned. There weren’t many answers coming from this.
Izuku sighed and gave Hanako a small smile, “Well, thank you for being so cooperative. Your input was helpful.”
“I didn’t give you any more information than what you already knew.” Hanako recalled and Izuku winced at the bluntness.
“Old information is still information. And now I have a better understanding since I know the layout of the story fully.” Izuku turned his body towards Hanako. “Thank you for your help.” He held out his hand for Hanako to shake, which the other man took with a slightly odd expression. “If I find any new information that regards you in any way, I’ll be sure to let you know.”
Hanako stared at him for a moment and Izuku couldn’t figure out why. He didn’t think he said anything out of the ordinary. Before Izuku could question him further, Hanako stood up and dropped their hands so he could turn to the door that led to the cafe. “I appreciate that.”
Izuku brightened and followed behind Hanako with his plate and mug in hand. Hanako returned to his home behind the counter, grabbing a white rag from his apron and flipping it onto his shoulder. Izuku walked to lean against the counter and observe the man as he gathered his thoughts together.
Within the past two days, Izuku had discovered a minor villain he hadn’t heard a word about before and he didn’t know why he was so obsessed with him. Kabuki wasn’t even considered a high threat. All the man had done was run away from police, fight someone in an alleyway, mess with a power box, and cut Izuku’s face. It almost sounded like how Izuku imagined Kacchan could’ve become if he continued to be a delinquent. Kabuki was barely even a villain, so why was Izuku so obsessed with finding out more ?
Izuku suspected it was the mystery of it all that drew him in so much. He wanted to know more about the villain, how he came to be Kabuki, why he bothered doing the illegal things he did. He had no intention of hurting Izuku and that got his head spinning the most. Why didn’t he want to hurt Izuku? Not to brag, but Deku was the number three pro hero right after Hawks while Endeavor held onto the number one spot like it was a lifeline. Kabuki didn’t seem to have the same intentions as someone like Stain the Hero Killer since he wasn’t trying to hurt or toy with Izuku. He had just seemed… aggravated. And it didn’t even seem like his irritation was aimed at Izuku until the mask was cracked. Izuku still felt a path of guilt at the implication that the mask he broke had meant something to the villain. Hopefully the irritation was because he would have to replace it, not because it was valuable for any reason.
“Are you going to keep hovering around the counter mumbling?”
Izuku nearly jumped out of his skin at the sudden sound of Hanako beside him. The man was bent over with his elbows resting on the smooth counter right beside where Izuku was resting the back of his thighs against. Izuku quickly slapped a hand over his mouth and turned around to bow deeply to Hanako. “I’m so sorry! God- I haven’t done that since highschool . I’ll get out of your hair.”
Before Hanako could protest, which Izuku doubted he would’ve done, Izuku left some cash in the tip jar and rushed out of the cafe bookstore with bright red cheeks. He was sure that the people in the cafe angrily grumbled about the ruckus he had made.
However, he was certain Izuku felt Hanako’s heavy gaze on him until he was fully out of sight from the windows of the cafe.