Cubicity

Chapter 39: New Year! New Problems. New Solutions?

Tooru asked, "So no more incidents?"

Izuku answered back into the phone with, "Nothing out of the ordinary. It's mostly been patrol work and training in their gym. How about you?"

"Been pretty quiet here, but it's given us a lot of time to train. Ashido-chan is working on something pretty nifty, and I'm developing a super move with Aoyama-kun. I'll show it to you once you are back in the dorms."

"I can't wait!"

Midoriya looked back up at the cloudless night sky. Behind him was the skyscraper that was Endeavor's Hero Agency, his home for the last few days. He had just showered from a long day of work and was catching up with his girlfriend. This was the second time she had called; the first was on New Year's Day when the internship began.

Hagakure then asked, "So did you read any of that book you were given? You seemed pretty hyped about it."

Izuku reached into his pocket and pulled out said object. "I finished it the night after we last talked."

"And?"

Midoriya bit his lip as he pondered the question. He gave a good hard look at its title, Meta Liberation War. An autobiography by one of the most influential villains in Japan's history, Destro. And who had given Izuku this book? The current number two hero of his country, Hawks. Enthusiastically even, and out of the blue. After pursuing a villain just minutes into his internship, the number two hero hastily captured him and then provided Endeavor and the others with the piece of literature. The boy didn't recognize what the book was at first, but he quickly did within the first page. He heard that the leader of the Meta Liberation Army had written such a piece while serving time in prison, but he never had a desire to read such a thing.

"This pause is telling me you didn't like it."

"I mean, its message is good, but the methods are too radical."

"That's about what Inoue-san said too."

"Wait, you know it? And him too?"

"A few years back, he had mentioned it as a crazy book when talking with my dad over dinner. Once I heard you mention the title in our last call, I was curious about what you would think of it, so I didn't say anything. I wanted your unbiased review of it."

Izuku rubbed the back of his neck as he said, "I see. Well, the idea of a free quirk usage sounds good for the public, the means of fighting violently to achieve that isn't."

"A good message, bad method. I gotcha. Still, I am surprised you are for the idea of free quirks. Things would get pretty chaotic I feel."

"At first, yeah, but I think our current society has gone on long enough that we can do such a thing. It made total sense to restrict quirk usage at the start when the introduction of quirks caused everything to go topsy-turvy. But things, for the most part, are peaceful now. I think it could work." Even quirkless, Midoriya had observed plenty of quirk suppression as he grew up. Sure he had received the wrong end of it at times, but as a whole, he felt limiting how people could express themselves wasn't the way to go about things.

"Well, maybe once you become number one you can fight for such change. You might be able to convince enough people by then." Hagakure then sighed, "Odd that such a cutie as Hawk has such views though. Perhaps this is his way of bringing about such a change. I mean, he doesn't seem like the violent type, right? You met the guy, even if briefly."

Izuku coughed before asking, "Cutie?"

"This isn't the first time I have mentioned it, you know."

"Yeah yeah, I remember." He recalled the conversation when touring Tokoyami's room back in September.