Checkmate (ShinDeku)

6

Summary of this chapter- Casually breaking the fourth wall. Not holding back on my usual sass. Once again falling in love with the hero/villain dynamic. Pretty much all the usual stuff. 

*Warning: Violence

Who run's the world?

Unstable heroes whose savior complex overrides any common sense. 

But for the sake of his pride, Izuku is going to pretend he doesn't know that. 

So of course, it's only logical Izuku would go back to try and find MindJack again. He made up some half-assed excuse for going on his normal patrol tonight. Told Tsu he needed a night in, to which she very much agreed. He even justified it to himself by saying he wouldn't reveal himself unless absolutely necessary. 

The night was much colder than last and his costume was doing little to nothing to protect him from the chill. He hunched over, beginning to regret going out in the first place. It had been over two hours of walking aimlessly down the streets and there were still no leads. He debated going back to his car and driving around to the outskirts of town but he, and most of the city, knew that was a terrible idea.

Apparently being a good hero did not equal being a good driver. Although honestly, it was like that light pole had come out of nowhere! 

You know that saying 'driving around the city is a nightmare'? Yeah. He was pretty sure that had been his fault. 

He decided to do the next best thing and loop around some of the warehouse buildings. Skirting along the edges of shadows to stay hidden. It was much quieter. The commotion of the streets drowned out by the emptiness around him. His steps were light, mimicking the silence as he crept forward. 

It was one of his favorite skills. He hadn't had a lot going for him as a kid. Short and skinny. Too quiet to be considered important but too talkative to be considered shy either. Always just stuck in that awkward in-between. But he'd always been stealthy. 

It had worked in his favor in his younger years, being able to keep up the confident persona for his mother. Learning how to hide reactions when he got into U.A. . It had become his saving grace and his downfall all in one.

There was a lilt in the breeze as he stepped between two buildings, creating just enough of an echo for him to pick up the sound of footsteps. Izuku froze. His ears strained in an attempt to identify which direction the footsteps were coming from. They were quiet, almost as quiet as his. But uneven, giving away that whoever had been walking had seen him stop.

His breath caught. Izuku had to force him to stay calm and with a rigid slowness, pressed his back against the building. The shadows were deceptively still as he glanced from side to side. As if waiting to see who would act first. 

It was at this point most protagonists said something like "It's probably just my imagination" or "let me call (insert bland love interest)". However, Izuku was not like most protagonists; he was way cooler. Although his coolness factor was doing little to soothe the panic beginning to creep in. 

It would be an unfair fight in the dark. Without a visible opponent, his support items were useless. 

He would have liked to pretend this new development wasn't concerning. That he was just as confident as always. 

But the thrum of his heart told a different story. The little fucker.

Izuku was not proud of what he did next. 

When the footsteps stopped his started. He raced forward, eyes straining to see through the shadows as he neared the closest source of light. He didn't bother with being quiet now, his feet slapping against the pavement.