Addicting Virus - Tododeku

Chapter 7

All the correct wires are exposed. There haven't been any stragglers. And so far, the AquaBrigade has been unconscious for longer than expected. Everything is going according to plan. Almost. Midoriya tells himself, shooting a glance at the drugged hero. He wills himself not to dwell on his doubts. Rule number one. Rule number one. Rule number one. More than two years since his first murder, Izuku was learning the hard lesson that he wasn't good at being a villain. Not naturally anyway. There were an intuitive set of skills that Toga and Shigaraki could access like breathing.

But without help, Midoriya struggled on the best days and failed on the worst. Be like an anchored ship. Don't be swept away by the tide. He had his routines, and his rules, and both were essential to him being a functional villain. With them he made quick decisions, rarely overthought, and he did not second guess himself. Doubt didn't matter much, if one were essentially running on autopilot. Yet right now, it was all he could do. He was hyperfixed, mind locked on one detail, one nagging suspicion that he couldn't manage to shake. Rule number one. Rule number one. Rule number one. He reminds himself as the Pro begins to stir. The words escape his mouth before he can stop them,

"Did you know?"

The Pro jerks at the sound of Midoriya's voice, quickly stumbling to his feet. Despite the dim lighting in the hall, Midoriya can see the questions in his eyes. The "where am Is", the "whys", but all he wants to hear is a yes or no. Midoriya had gone through extensive lengths to prepare for this showdown. He planned on showing Akiyama how badly he used his quirk, and the consequences of that. It was why they were alone on the third floor of an abandoned home on the outskirts of town. Why he carefully damaged the wiring to make the old home a nightmare for someone with a water quirk. Why he added rubber to most parts of his suit.

That was the idea he came up with two months ago, back when the duo initially caught his eye. A suspicious death in WhirlWhip's inner circle led to Izuku digging deeper into his past. Digging that involved hacking into many computers and databases, to find out what a monster he was. Several complaints had been filed against the Pro for years. They had each been filed by different women up to about a year ago, when several were submitted by one Misaki Tanaka.

She was murdered three months ago, and the injuries on her corpse made WhirlWhip a likely suspect. But AquaBrigade? By all metrics, the man was a model hero, the only major flaw he had was his overreliance on some techniques. His quirk use was effective but had major weaknesses that nearly cost him several times. But Izuku never intended to kill him.

Ooh, a two for one special. Toga had purred after she and Izuku had knocked both AquaBrigade and WhirlWhip unconscious. Well actually we're only taking one, Izuku corrected as he removed a boxcutter from his jacket. A year and a half ago, he would have agonized over this decision, then probably cried and vomited afterwards. Now, he slit WhirlWhips' neck open without hesitation, and swallowed down all feelings of guilt. Can you help me bring AquaBrigade to the building over there?

Yet, this was turning into something completely different than what he intended. Izuku developed a growing suspicion as the date of his plan moved closer. You knew didn't you? You knew what he'd done. The thought played in his head on repeat as Akiyama squints at him.

Despite his efforts to focus on the plan, he couldn't shake the angry conviction that AquaBrigade should've died with his partner. But he couldn't act on his gut, he wouldn't. Not when he didn't even have any proof. Not even circumstantial evidence. I need to calm down. He urges himself as the Pro shakily gets to his feet. I won't be like Stain. I can't be like Stain. Yet his internal pleading did not shake his gut feeling that Akiyama knew.