A Hero's Dirty Work (Villain Deku / Vigilante Deku au)

Newsworthy

"Tomorrow is the entrance exam for U.A., where All Might is teaching this year. I've had Kurogiri construct a background for you, with all of the legal documents and records you might possibly need. You'll be going under the name Michi Hamasaki, and you must be as pure and outstanding as you can. If you can get All Might to pass on One For All to you, even better."

The man paused for a moment before continuing, his normally stoic voice betraying his extreme irritation. "Now, there are somethings that go without saying, but over the last ten months you have taught me that nothing goes without saying for you. Midoriya, you will never under any circumstances reveal anything about the League of Villains." 

Even though he almost staggered when he heard he'd been a captive for that long, Midoriya barely refrained from smirking; it was one day too late for that. However, All For One wasn't done. "You will try your best to convince All Might, without being too obvious, to give you One For All. If he offers it to you, you will accept. And, of course, while you are being trained, you will be a true hero. Your natural personality, while difficult to work with and shape into a villain, is the perfect cover for being in a hero school. Save as many people as you can or want, become the shining star of U.A., become an idol. We will use you to destroy All Might and everyone's faith in their heroes at the same time."

Midoriya found himself nodding without his consent. He scowled, mind already racing for loopholes. "This face has already been seen by the public as a vigilante," he realized. "How should I change my appearance?"

"I don't care. Just don't make it recognizable from your vigilante work or as Izuku Midoriya. The exam is tomorrow morning; you'd better get ready."

Midoriya left, heading up the stairs to his room. He assumed he'd either be staying here or he'd be sent to a cover house with some more of All For One's lackeys to pretend to be his parents.

"We're going to hero school!" Izuku cheered in his head. Midoriya rolled his eyes. 

"Stop saying "we", it's weird. I'm the same person as you," he said.

"No, you're not," Izuku said. "We share a mind and a body, but... we're not the same. You like revenge too much, and you don't care as much about saving people and being a hero."

Midoriya considered. He'd felt a rush of fulfillment and satisfaction when he'd saved those people from the goons last night, but... was that just Izuku? He stopped, realizing he needed to go back down the stairs and talk to All For One. There was still so much he didn't know and couldn't remember, and he knew the old bastard could tell him at least part of it.

By the time he made it back into the bar, Kurogiri was the only one there, standing behind the counter and cleaning a cup. With his head wreathed in a dark purple shadow while the rest of his body was clad in an elegant suit, he was certainly one of the most professionally intimidating people Midoriya had ever seen.

"Where's All For One?" Midoriya asked. Kurogiri raised an eyebrow.

"You're looking for him?" he asked in surprise. "Why?"

"There's a lot I need to know before going to school. I still don't even know which quirks he forced on me other than the ability to change how I look."

"Ah," the man said in realization. "Well, that is something I can help you with. No need to call him. Firstly, as I'm not sure you remember, you were not quirkless before you came here."

Midoriya raised an eyebrow. "I wasn't?"

Kurogiri shook his head. "Your quirk was Analysis, though you didn't know how to use it. You used a part of your abilities when you watched the hero fights, but you didn't even unlock a fraction of its potential until All For One forced it out of you with his training. He also gave you the quirk Research as an experiment, because he believes its effect will combine with your analysis to make it exponentially more effective. Unlike Analysis, Research requires a physical touch to activate, and it lets you see information about an individual's quirk and personality.

"Other than that and Disguise to change your looks, the rest of the quirks he gave you are passive. You have Regenerate to improve your healing, Resilience to decrease damage from physical attacks, and Energy Absorption to nullify heat or electricity attacks. He considered giving you Shock Absorption as well, but unfortunately we already have a use for that particular quirk."

Midoriya stared at his hands in confusion. Maybe it was his Analysis quirk working out all of the ways his combination of quirks could be used... he certainly wasn't a heavy hitter, but he could feel the power he wielded all the same. If he could really get All Might to give him One For All, putting an end to All For One with his own hands was suddenly a very reachable goal.

"In all honesty, it's a shock that you didn't turn into a Nomu," Kurogiri admitted. "I've never seen anyone receive so many quirks and come out with their mind intact."

"Sort of intact," Midoriya muttered absentmindedly, imagining the ways a fight could go down against a quirk like Endeavor's. He ignored Izuku's protests against fighting a hero, wanting to test himself all the same. Fire as strong as Endeavor's didn't have many counters. He realized what he'd said when Kurogiri gave him a curious look, but he just shrugged. "I've got issues, but that's to be expected after whatever the bastard did to me. I can't even remember properly, and I'm still scared of him."

Kurogiri said nothing, turning back to his work. Midoriya wondered if he was angry with him for badmouthing All For One, or maybe mad at All For One for what he'd done to Midoriya. Maybe he just didn't care. Without really knowing how deep their bond went, it was impossible to tell.

Midoriya shrugged off his thoughts. He went to a mirror and changed his features once again for his new identity as Michi Hamasaki, giving himself a stronger nose and jawline, wavy, light blue hair, and harsh purple eyes. He thought about going for a more innocent, babyish look, but he worried that would just remind people like Kacchan—who, there was no doubt in Midoriya's mind, would also get accepted—of his actual identity.  Besides, if people were busy thinking and talking about the contrast between the dangerous appearance and overly kind personality, they wouldn't be very likely to look any further into his past.

Finally, new identity finished, he went out into the city to test the prowess of his quirks. He wandered the streets, random shops, even the mall despite the awful memories, brushing against random people's shoulders and activating his Research quirk. Kurogiri's explanation of the quirk was probably accurate, but combined with Analysis... All For One had been right to assume they would complement each other. Midoriya—no, he should start thinking of himself as Michi—hated to admit when the man was right, but considering how much it helped him, he was willing to look past it just this once.

He was glad he took this time to practice; if he'd tried to use it for the first time during combat, he would have been overwhelmed and lost immediately. Just with a slight brush against their shoulder, he could see their emotional state, any old injuries, their quirk, as well as its uses, weaknesses, and more. Until he got more practice, though, he would just focus on reading those specific aspects to avoid getting overwhelmed.

All too soon, the day was coming to an end. He thought about making another appearance as a vigilante—he knew he was all over the news and that excited him, though he wasn't sure if they'd given him a name yet. In the end, though, he decided that it would be a much better idea to get some sleep. He wasn't sure what to expect from the exam tomorrow, and he needed to be ready for anything.