The Deku

Chapter 7: The Underground

The boy with head of green hair, marched his way through the slummiest, sketchiest, dirtiest parts of the city. It started to rain, electrifying the neon lights of bars, brothels, and smoke stores he passed by.

It would seem dangerous, only the places he walked were surprisingly busy. People who thrived on the shady dark world in the shadows of Japan intermingling with people just passing through or stopping by for a brief moment of pleasure and escape.

Izuku looked on ahead, due to his teenage innocence, and his overbearing determination. Still, people gave him odd looks wherever he darted his eyes from off his course. He was dressed in a black hero costume after all. It was probably why some people were keeping their distance.

But his costume didn't have many big pockets, so he brought an old bag with himself, not his backpack. And inside were the tools he would need for the job.

Where to begin? He started to look around. The neon lights in the streets went away and he found himself in a section with no lights, and people hiding their faces as they interacted amongst each other.

"You lost, young man?" An older gentleman with a sly smile stuck on his face. His eyes seemed half shut naturally. He wore a purple jacket and round glasses with a cigarette poking out the corner of his mouth.

Izuku thought about his response. He can't just bring this up to just anyone. But he needed to risk it in order to find his way to those villains. He needed to lie, which was something he was never good at. Mustering up all the confidence in his mission to his voice, he pulled his mouth guard from his mouth, turned and gave the man a returning smirk.

"I....heard about some guys looking for people. I've got nothing left to lose and I'd like to join them." Izuku said.

The man cocked his eyebrow in intrigue. "You got any Quirk?"

"...I can make myself so quiet, normal ears can't hear a thing I do." He explained. If there ever was a Quirk he could attempt to fake, it could be stealth, which is entirely how he planned to accomplish this job.

"Interesting. Not the best Quirk. Hell, it sounds pathetic but... I know some guys who just love people with nothing left to lose." He chuckled. "Come this way." He gestured for Izuku to approach his doorway flexing his finger into a hook slowly over and over.

Izuku replaced his mouth guard to cover his face again and stepped forward.

The man lead him inside to a small hole-in-the-wall diner with no patrons besides them. "So what's your plan, kid?" He turned and asked keeping his smile.

Izuku nearly jumped at the question. "Plan?"

"Yeah, everybody's got a motive. Revenge, money, love, anarchy, you name it. I've seen it all." He smirked.

"...I seek to kill the men who took my mother." Izuku said. He decided those choice words because this guy didn't seem like the type who liked words like "justice". Did he mean kill? He didn't mean to mean it... But it came out very genuine. A lie that he could produce that was so believable, it fooled him for the moment.

"Oh you'll have fun with these guys then." The man smirked. "Name's Giran."

Now Izuku hadn't thought of his hero codename. He could have fun with it playing the part of a villain. He thought back to the names he thought he would have as a hero. Most of them were All Might ripoffs however.

Then something made him think back to the only other close influence in his childhood besides his mother's names for him. Katsuki Bakugou, his friend-turned-bully, called him Deku, for how useless and Quirkless he was considered.

"Deku." Izuku said, returning a name back and shaking the man's hand.

"Interesting name. I take it you're quite the underdog. Have you ever committed a crime before?" Giran asked.

"Theft..." Izuku stared at him.

"Oh right. Stealth. I should have guessed." He shrugged and chuckled.

"Are those men here?" Izuku asked a little impatiently.

"I just sent them a message. They don't often get volunteers." Giran smirked. He seemed to know their true motives.

Izuku guessed he thought they would take him like they did his mother, even voluntarily.

"I told you why I'm doing this." Izuku sighed. "What will they have me do that will get me to exact revenge?"

He asked that more to pass the time, but it was still very good to get any information out as possible.

"They're more involved in robberies. They organize heists and stuff. Sometimes if they're lucky, they get to kill people like hitmen." Giran explained, probably not being the most honest about their plans. To him, Izuku was just another victim just making himself an easier target.

He didn't jump to the conclusion that Izuku wanted revenge on those villains specifically. But not many groups of villains in trucks would go around kidnapping just anybody.

They didn't share everyone they kidnapped with Giran, but he did manage to hear about it somehow. The chance that they kidnapped a woman who was this boy's mother was entirely possible.

"I only want the chance to kill the monsters who kidnapped my mother." Izuku frowned.

"Now now. Think about your future, son! With a Quirk like yours, any team of killers and robbers would love to have you. In fact, the guys you want were so thrilled to hear about your Quirk from me, they're on their way now." Giran sighed happily. "Any minute now, in fact."

Their conversation ended there once they heard a firm knock on the door. "Splendid!" Giran cheered.

In the door stepped a team of three men, only one of which Izuku recognized. His skin was very wrinkled everywhere, definitely more for his Quirk than because of aging because he moved like he was much younger than he appeared. He was one of the men who sat in the back of the van.

All three of them were dressed in black jackets and pants.

Izuku resisted the urge to pull out his guns now. He had to wait longer to get in closer, and get all the targets together into one room.

"So you're the kid?" The wrinkled villain asked.

"Don't look like much to me." Another frowned, bearing his sharp teeth.

"Not for now at least." The third smirked.

"He's got potential. Why don't y0u go see what he's worth." Giran smiled standing up from his seat at one of the nearest booths.

"You promised us warriors, Giran. Not just anybody 'with nothing left to lose'." The sharp-toothed villain said.

"I want to join. Let me see it." Izuku said boldly as he turned to the three men to face them. "I will prove myself useful to you."

For a moment, each of them smiled. "Alright then, kid. Let's show you off."