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Contrary to what the person contracting him had thought, Izuku had not been oblivious to the fact that the message he was supposed to deliver had a suspicious recipient; He just didn’t care.
Izuku had extorted the (if not from yakuza themselves, then at least yakuza-inclined) person for half of the payment upfront. Both of them understood that the other half would never change hands, but only one of them was under the impression that he was tricking the other.
Honestly, it was a bit sad that a grown person was trying (and failing) to trick a teenager. But Izuku wouldn’t complain, not when it had netted him enough cash to buy the latest All Might figurine and still have a bit to spare.
All he had to do was deliver a note to a “man in a beak-shaped face mask”, which Izuku already had a plan for: The person who gave him those instructions had been perilously vague, to Izuku’s benefit. As long as he found anyone matching that description — which could even include a couple heroes, if he was really lucky! — his part of the deal would be fulfilled!
Izuku happily headed straight towards the merch shop, intending to spend his money first. But then, an opportunity appeared, in the form of a man wearing a bird mask, one whom Izuku managed to glimpse in one of the alleyways off to the side.
“Excuse me!” He called out, fumbling for the envelope he had been given. “I’ve got a message for you, mister!”
The man didn’t look at him at first — probably assuming that Izuku had been talking to someone else — but he did shoot Izuku a disgusted glare once he made it close enough. Which, rude.
“What do you want, brat?” The man asked, pointedly taking a step back.
Izuku thrust the envelope at him. “Message,” he repeated.
The man refused to touch the envelope. Izuku internally sighed, lamenting at the man’s lack of cooperation. Even if he hadn’t been expecting any messages, he should have at least accepted the letter! Izuku briefly debated just leaving it on the ground, but… That wouldn’t be fulfilling his task, would it be?
After a quick deliberation, Izuku brought the envelope back. “I can read it out-loud?” He offered, expecting that to push the man into taking it. Who would wish for their correspondence to be read out-loudy?
But the man just rolled his eyes. “If you must.”
…Alright then. Izuku ripped the envelope open, fishing out the small piece of paper. “Shipment failed. Heroes tailing. Rerouting needed.” The words didn’t make much sense to him, and he doubted that they made sense to the random person he accosted, either, but at least he could now say that his job was done!
He folded the paper back into the envelope, intending to say his goodbyes, but when he looked up… The man did not appear confused. No, he appeared pissed.
“Who gave that to you?” He asked, his voice low with anger.
Izuku promptly ratted out the exact appearance of the person who sent him on this errand, complete with their approximate quirk; He owed no loyalty to the person who tried to trick him.
The man looked at him with something resembling interest. “...what is your quirk?”
The answer should be a lie. Some insignificant quirk, nothing important, preferably something that couldn’t be tested- “I’m quirkless.”
Instead of disgust, the man’s eyes curled in a smile. “Good. Come with me.”
“...to identify him?” He asked, even as the man grabbed his arm and started walking. “To identify him, right?”
