Finding Me (Todoroki x Reader)

Chapter 105

"Indeed. That's precisely what we've come here to discuss."

My eyes were wide with surprise at the two boys standing up across from me. Never had I felt such determination and frustration exude from one person at one time, let alone two - it was so overwhelming I had to sit further back in my seat so I could just think and breathe. Their faces held deep regret: the biting of the lip, the creasing of their brows. Their clenched fists. Togata and Midoriya were the very definition of frustrated resolve.

What they'd vowed was the truth: they would stop at nothing to protect this Eri next time.

"Pfft." My attention dropped to the dark-skinned man sitting beside Midoriya. "You kids wanna talk big, that's fine. But if what Nighteye is saying's for real; then that little girl is at the centre of Hassaikai's entire underground drug operation. She may have managed to get away from Overhaul for a few minutes, but she got herself seen by a couple of heroes.

"You think he's still gonna keep her at home after that? Hell, I know I sure wouldn't. And if we go busting into their headquarters and she's not there, they're gonna know that we're on to them. We've gotta be sure of where he's hiding her."

Down the table, Ryukyu released a sigh. "He has a point. Do you have a plan for that, Nighteye?"

"That's our conundrum," the green-haired man with glasses responded - I just noticed that his hair was also streaked with yellow at the front. "Since we don't currently know how far they've taken their plans, success of our initial strike is crucial. To that end, we've made a thorough list of groups with connections to Hassaikai; as well as properties owned by the organisation. This is our starting point."

On the screen above, an enlarged map of Japan appeared, with ten beeping dots littered across it. Those were obviously to be our starting points. My goodness, they were all over Japan.

"I would like all of you to investigate each coordinate on this map. It is the most logical way to narrow down our targets."

Mr. Brave shuffled in his seat beside the white armoured hero, his red cape ruffling against the wooden seat. He had a head gold piece that covered his eyes, matching the pieces of armour he also wore. "So that's why you asked minor heroes like us to join you," he said.

"What do you mean?" his friend beside him asked, his voice coming out scratchy and robotic.

"Go on. Look, the heroes in this room all operate at one of those lookouts. We know the areas better than most."

Looking back up at the map, I couldn't help but agree with the hero. All the coordinates were all widespread across Japan, but the Pro Heroes weren't generally in the smaller cities, which was where some of the dots seems to be - away from the capitals.

"I get it," I said. "Not only do the local heroes of those areas know them very well, but they're more conspicuous compared to Pro Heroes. If a Pro were to suddenly go visit a small town, those organisations would become cautious and close up shop. And that wouldn't help us at all."

Everyone's gaze fell on me, to which a raging blush flared up my neck. And it only got worse when I locked eyes with the golden irises of Sir Nighteye. His piercing gaze pinned me to the back of my chair, making the hairs on my arms and legs stand to attention. Oh crap, did I get that wrong?

The host's gaze lingered on me for another moment or two before he gave me a single nod. "Precisely, L/N. High ranking Pros draw too much attention, and would thus alert the targets of any danger. We must be patient and inconspicuous."

When his gaze slipped away from me, I allowed myself to slump in my seat, taking in a deep breath. Sir Nighteye could seriously be just as scary as Mr. Aizawa sometimes. Were they secretly related or what? I inwardly chuckled at that. That was such a Shoto thing to think.