The Emperor's Dragon II

Active Infestation

"That was interesting. That was so boring!" Twice whispered as soon as Himiko had disappeared with their probable boss in search of Kurogiri. In the silence of the warehouse, it was loud enough for them all to hear.

The kid had checked to see what they were doing but he'd obviously decided that they could listen in if they wanted. He couldn't possibly have thought he'd spoken quiet enough not to be heard.

"He's just a fucking kid!" Butterfly complained, flapping her wings in agitation.

Atsuhiro watched the display without comment. The kid, as she put it, had never made any issue of his age. They'd never asked his exact age but it wasn't hard to work out given his enrolment in UA and the uniform he wore. He was first year, so was 16. Was she really that surprised?

He'd been more impressed that the kid was taking the time to truly think about how to utilise their skills. During their question sessions, Atsuhiro had noted how the kid had phrased his questions about their quirks. He knew what they did and he had some idea of how to utilise them. At least theoretically. It remained to be seen how practical his plans would be. He'd actually told them why he was hesitating with the mission they'd agreed to. The first reason was sensible. The heroes were still desperately looking for them. The second was a bit more esoteric. He wanted to think of something that was one off so that if they did decide to leave, then his plans weren't thrown out by needing to learn about a new group. Atsuhiro knew that even if they left, the kid had the resources to get more villains in.

What he had to decide was if he wanted to help the kid.... If what the kid stood for was enough like what he wanted.

"He is," Dabi agreed with the woman. "But he has resources," the fire-quirk user pointed out.

That was true.

"But he's a kid!" Butterfly growled again. She shook her head. "He hasn't done anything. You heard him!"

They had and as Atsuhiro looked around, he realised they had all taken different things from the conversation the kid had with Himiko. The obvious thing was that Izuku hadn't meant to kill Shigaraki. He'd admitted that himself. But at the same time he wasn't whining about it. The kid accepted the fact that he had done it, and that he'd probably screwed up some plans. Atsuhiro approved of that. There was no point in crying about what couldn't be changed. And...

Atsuhiro nodded to himself. "We heard him," he confirmed for Butterfly.

"He's just gonna use us!" She complained.

That wasn't what Atsuhiro had heard. The kid had probably been distressed that he'd killed but he hadn't let that stop him. Himiko had somehow seen that he was unhappy but she had known him when he was younger. He'd accepted her offer to teach him. That told Atsuhiro that the boy knew his shortcomings, or at least, some of them and was prepared to work at fixing them. As Butterfly indicated he might use them but if he was learning to do what they already could, and if he was willing to lead, then it would only be for a short time.

"We are getting paid," Dabi pointed out.

That was the other thing. They hadn't been paid for the job Tomura had them do yet. They'd been interrupted by the Heroes before he could pay them. The kid, Izuku, had agreed to pay them but had requested that they wait until the heat died down. He'd even offered compensation for those days. Not a lot but enough that it wasn't a huge burden to stay here. Atsuhiro knew his own place would have been compromised. He looked around at the others.

He was pretty sure Dabi had some other reason to stay. The other villain had spoken to Izuku privately and had probably worked out an agreement. Except Dabi had never announced that he was staying with the kid so... Atsuhiro mentally shrugged. It could be a lot of things.