Timeloop Trouble

Chapter 44 - Caught

It took longer than Izuku thought for Eraserhead to catch onto him. He was going out more now, investigating the area where Eri's parents lived, trying to find the approach to this. He was ten now, almost eleven, and running out of time. Aizawa had caught onto that pattern, lurking around in the same area in order to catch him off guard. Izuku had been able to avoid him up until now, but it seemed like his luck ran out today.

"I wonder what piqued your interest about this place," Eraser said, startling Izuku. He hadn't heard him approach at all! "The crime rate is low around here, barely anything interesting happens."

"Shouldn't a hero be happy about that?" Izuku asked in return, putting down his goggles and turning around to face the pro. They were sitting on a rooftop not that far from Eri's apartment building and Izuku was trying to figure out her parents' schedule. Aizawa noticed that, too, snatching away the notebook before Izuku could even blink.

"What do we have here?"

"Give that back!" Izuku hissed, immediately using Blackwhip to enstrangle him, putting force on his wrist so he had no choice but to let go.

"You know stalking someone is against the law, don't you Midoriya?"

Izuku's eyes widened for a second, and he hoped desperately that his mask covered him enough for it not to show. How did he get that name..?

"You know, there really aren't many quirkless children around these days," Aizawa continued, making him realize his mistake. "Definitely not in the neighborhood you're usually active in. There's only one that fits the description."

"Why not arrest me if you think you know who I am?" Izuku asked, still not letting go of the pro hero in his grasp. "Why not go to the police? My school? My parents?"

"I've tried to intercept you, to question you, but it seems someone else is trying very hard to cover for you," Aizawa grunted, the restraints getting somewhat uncomfortable. "Every time I get close to you, something seems to get in the way."

"There's no one helping me," Izuku told him. No one else knew about his secret identity or what he was up to at night. Unless someone was keeping an eye on him... One of the villainous groups that were interested in his powerset, the ones Aizawa himself warned him about when they only just met. But that would mean they knew his identity too, and hadn't made a move yet, which was unlikely and somewhat concerning. Izuku was sure he covered up his tracks well enough.

"Sure," Eraserhead said, clearly not believing him. "Look, Midoriya, you're breaking a lot of laws doing this, okay? To use your quirk in public against other civilians without a permit, underaged with no adult supervision. To hide the fact you have a quirk from the state- Which, I honestly do not understand. You seem to have a normal upbringing from what I can tell. No ties to criminal organizations, no reason to hide the fact you have a strong quirk-"

"My reasons are none of your business," Izuku snapped. "If you want to arrest me then go ahead! See if you're able to keep me contained."

"I want to know what you're hoping to achieve by doing all of this," Aizawa hissed, his eyes flaring red. Blackwhip wasn't dissipating though. No, Izuku had anticipated this and was using Float as well, even though he was barely hovering over the ground. He'd learned a long time ago that Eraserhead can only erase one of his quirks at the time. "How-"

"Nice try, Eraser," Izuku told him as he watched the panic and confusion set in. "But like I said, I'm not so easily detained. And luckily for you, I don't want to hurt you. I just want to help people. So let's keep this information between us, okay?"

"Why are you stalking that family?" he asked. "At least tell me that much."

"You wouldn't believe me even if I told you," Izuku said. "Besides, it's none of your business anyway. The only thing I ask for is that you leave me alone. I can handle myself and I don't want to cause mom any pain or sorrow by having the police come and tell her her son is running rampant around the streets at night planning on kidnapping a child."