Chapter Text
“If you’re saying that Midoriya’s Quirk is like All Might’s, then what about Kenji-kun?”
Kirishima stared at the said boy with awe in his eyes. “Kenji does also have a strength enhancement Quirk and it doesn’t hurt him at all!”
All eyes turned to look at the smiling blonde who could only look at each classmate speaking. His ‘Quirk’ is like All Might’s, huh?
“I’m not as strong as All Might though,” Kenji told his curious classmates. His eyes quickly flitted to Midoriya’s before looking around once more. “Besides, I can’t use it in the rain! All Might doesn’t have any limitations like me.”
“That is true…”
Contrary to popular belief, Kenji is capable of lying. He doesn’t like doing so, but if he’s going to complete this job, he’ll have to bend the truth a few times.
“A request from UA?”
Fukuzawa shook his head. “Not exactly from UA itself.” He nodded at Kunikida to continue with the documents in his hands.
Nodding, Kunikida began to explain. “We received an anonymous tip from somewhere in Musutafu. The tip said that a group of villains plan on sending a student as a spy for them. That is all the information given, and we were unable to trace the person who sent it to begin with.”
“But Musutafu?” Tanizaki asked curiously. “I thought we didn’t take requests from outside of Yokohama?”
Kunikida turned to the president to continue. He, too, had had the same concerns when Fukuzawa had first called him into the office, so he’ll allow him to explain fully.
“The outside Villains are only concerned about heroes.” Making sure all eyes were on him, he continued. “Our city is protected by the fact that the majority of its population is ‘Quirkless’, and the only ones to care for their safety are us Ability users."
“Well, yes, but how does it affect us now?” Atsushi asked. Kyouka nodded beside him.
“Should the infiltration of UA be successful, the negative effects on hero society will not only spread in Musutafu, but it will spread throughout all of Japan, Yokohama included.” Eyes turned to the bored detective who looked like he would rather be anywhere but here at the moment.
“How can we trust this tip to be true though?” Yosano piped up with the wave of her hand. “Our specialists were unable to trace the sender, and this wouldn’t be the first time Villains who knew of our Abilities attempted to lure us out of Yokohama.”
“This isn’t a trick, Yosano.” Now that had everyone stiffen in surprise. Ranpo raised his head to look at the board. “Villains will have a mole amongst the students.”
When Ranpo says something like that, nobody in the room can bring themselves to argue.
“Well,” Dazai, who had been quiet this entire time, said, “what will we do, president?”
Kenji isn’t as naive as everyone first assumes. He is always sincere when it comes to dealing with others because he would rather come to an understanding rather than go straight into unnecessary force. It hasn’t kept him out of fights, of course, but at least he is able to have more and more sincere conversations afterwards.
“What sort of simulations do you think there will be?” Jirou asked no one in particular. The few walking alongside her were eager to answer.
“Saving people from Villains?” Kaminari proposed. Tsuyu shook her head.
“I don’t think we’re prepared for that type of rescue yet,” she said. “There will probably be more of saving citizens from rubble or burning buildings.”
“I’m sure there will be something like evacuating residents from flooded neighborhoods and rebuilding homes!” Kenji happily added his own thoughts. The three students who were conversing looked at him with raised brows. Kenji’s smile didn’t falter as he thought about why his classmates could be staring at him like that. “We’re first years; evacuation should be taught early on.”
“Well, yes, I get the evacuation part,” Jirou said hesitantly. “I don’t think we’ll have time to rebuild homes though?”
“At least not today,” Kaminari nodded helpfully.
“It sounds a little less than what a Hero usually does, kero.”
Right. Pro-heroes prioritize saving people in front of cameras. Helping in the rebuilding of peoples’ lives isn’t in their schedules. Kenji nodded in understanding. “I see. City heroes sure are busy, huh?”
“It’s amazing that we can even study under the number one Hero!” A small smile formed on the earphone-heroes face. Kenji couldn’t look away from that smile. “Taking the time out of his busy schedule to teach us slow hero-hopefuls.”
“We’re not all slow!”
Kenji is not a hero enthusiast like the students currently surrounding him. He doesn’t dislike them either, and he trusts them enough to do their job. He doesn’t like the way they handle situations, but he’s a Yokohama boy; what does he know?
“Welcome, everyone, to the USJ!” Now Thirteen he knows is a reliable hero. From the research the agency had found prior to sending Kenji on his mission, they knew this was a hero who specialized in evacuations and providing shelters for affected individuals. The media doesn’t cover much of Thirteen’s successful rescues and the careful care they took afterwards. What the Quirk-filled society wants to see is pro-heroes in action defeating Villains. Yet Thirteen is still out there doing what they feel is right for them. That is the type of hero Kenji can get behind.
As the pro-hero is explaining what the USJ is for and what each student should expect going forth, Kenji’s eyes swept across the students. He made sure to not be very obvious about it. The agency had trusted him to do this mission without being caught after all.
“President, I understand Tanizaki, but Kenji?” Kunikida looked about ready to snap his pen in half as he, along with most of the people in the room, stared at their head. “Kenji’s methods are anything but ideal for an undercover mission! Please reconsider!”
“It is true that Kenji’s way of handling cases is unusual,” Fukuzawa agreed. “However, it is because of his ability to talk to people that I feel comfortable assigning him as our undercover agent with Tanizaki.”
“Why not send Kyouka?” Atsushi hesitantly raised his hand. He honestly didn’t look too happy making the suggestion, but the boy knows of his coworkers’ skill sets. “She has done infiltration missions before. She’ll know what to do.”
They weren’t outright saying it, Kenji knows. He knows exactly why his coworkers are apprehensive of sending him instead of Kyouka who has more experience.
“I think sending Kenji-kun is a wonderful idea,” Dazai perked up in a tone that has everyone rolling their eyes. Well, everyone except for Kenji, Yosano, Ranpo, and Fukuzawa. “He is just the right age to take the entrance exam!”
“If you want to accept this situation with Kenji’s age, then Kyouka is perfect as well! She is fourteen and she has experience infiltrating enemy bases!”
“Now, now, Kunikida-kun. I’m not someone who justifies his actions with simple reasons such as that!” It took all of Kenji’s being to not roll his eyes at the older man's love for riling up his partner.
Kenji could tell that it took all of Kunikida’s being to contain his frustration as well. Pushing his glasses further up, Kunikida sighed. “Then explain what makes Kenji the better choice to send for infiltration?”
If anyone heard Ranpo groan in frustration, nobody paid attention. Dazai, on the other hand, smiled his all-knowing smile.
“All of you see Kenji-kun as an honest country boy who would spill the truth of his being at UA within the first few minutes of being inside.” Kenji wanted to sigh in frustration as soon as he saw the other detectives tense up at having their reasoning called out. It’s not much of a surprise to him at least. The way he presents himself doesn’t allow his coworkers to think differently.
“Kenji isn’t that naive,” Yosano chuckled. She was one of the few who knew how Kenji actually thought. “He knows what’s acceptable to say and what’s not. He wouldn’t be a detective otherwise.”
“I don’t like lying as that’s not the type of person I strive to be,” Kenji spoke up in his usual cheerful tone, except that all of the detectives in the room could hear the slight annoyance in his voice. “But I’m an ADA member. Of course I know when it isn’t appropriate to say the truth.”
The members had a few moments to ponder the new information before Kunikida voiced his concerns again.
“I am still opposed to sending Kenji. I still believe Kyouka is the better choice. She has prior infiltration experience. She’ll know when she should make an escape and how to do so quietly if she gets found out, and her Ability is strong enough to help her pass the entrance exam.”
“It’s because of her Ability that we can’t send her,” came Ranpo’s annoyed voice. All heads turned to the lazy detective who was dangerously leaning back on his chair. Without looking up, Ranpo continued. “The outside doesn’t like us Ability users. If Kyouka went instead of Kenji, she would immediately be found out. No matter how sentient, no Quirk is able to have as much of their own freedom as Demon Snow can. Not to mention she is waaay too flashy for an undercover mission. Everyone will know who she is.”
“Kenji-kun’s Ability is, to put it lightly, simple in terms of Quirks,” Dazai picked up. “Kenji-kun is still too strong for a fourteen-year-old, so if we put a few limitations, Kenji will be able to pass off as a Quirk user much more easily than Kyouka.”
“Just like the lot of you think Kenji is too innocent to be able to carry out a simple undercover mission, those hero students and teachers will have no reason to suspect Kenji of being anything other than a young country boy eager to become a hero like them.” With a huff, Yosano continued to inspect her nails. “Have a little faith in our coworker, geez.”
Hold himself back and observe. Those are the basic instructions Kenji was given. He’s done a good job of not standing out too much with his ‘Quirk’ so far. He honestly can’t believe the teachers looked at his forms and believed that he really can’t use his ‘Quirk’ in the rain. Kenji himself can’t see the logic behind it. He knows it’s to poke fun at his Ability name, but Ranpo did say to trust him on it, so Kenji will trust Ranpo’s reasoning as long as his teachers don’t ask him directly why rain hinders his ‘Quirk’.
A grumble from Kenji’s stomach brought the boy back to reality. The girl standing next to him turned and raised a brow at him. Releasing an embarrassed chuckle, Kenji waved it off.
“I skipped breakfast because of my excitement,” Kenji whispered. Jirou shook her head with a small smile. She must understand the feeling of being too excited to eat.
“I wonder what Lunch Rush will serve today?” she whispered back in amusement. Kenji was surprised to see her talking when one of her well-respected heroes was still talking. That is quite interesting.
“I hope it’s something delicious.”
Scoff. “Anything that guy makes is delicious.”
Kenji only chuckled in response. While the agency did ensure to impose some limitations to Kenji’s Ability, there’s a different type of limitation that doesn’t hinder his Ability: his food intake.
Kenji knows it wouldn’t be wise to eat his normal-sized meals every day. What type of Quirk gets weaker the more he eats? He isn’t giving up food entirely; the boy still needs to eat to survive. Kenji just has designated food times with a limited calorie consumption. Eat a light breakfast (a granola bar or toast for example), skip lunch, and then have a large dinner. That way his strength can stay consistent in front of his classmates and teachers. Kenji doesn’t like the limitation, but he’s willing to bear it so long as he’s a UA student.
Before Kenji could fully focus back on his teacher, the power went out. His smile turned into a frown as he assessed the situation. Could this be a part of the training?
His question was answered the moment his eyes landed on the purple fog swirling in front of the fountain. This wasn’t part of the training. This was an attack.
“Tanizaki-san,” Kenji muttered as quietly as he could to avoid being heard by the earphone girl, but he knew his partner was listening. He knew what Kenji wanted to say. It’s just as Dazai-san predicted .
Nothing else was exchanged between the two agents as the heroes sprang into action and the students were quickly evacuated. In the end, the evacuation would prove to be useless, and Kenji’s vision was covered in purple.
If only one of the limitations the agency placed on Kenji wasn’t the fact that he can’t take damage from external attacks. Otherwise, he totally would have wiped out the group of Villains fighting them with weapons. A group of twenty-something Villains against four teenagers. How laughable.
Kenji tried his usual card. A sincere conversation often leads to sincere revelations, you know? Well, Kenji is quickly learning how stubborn Villains outside of Yokohama can be. The first Villain to attempt to land a punch on him was sent flying instead. Kenji just wanted a civil talk, okay?
At least he had created enough of a distraction for Yaoyorozu to create an insulated cover big enough to cover herself, Jirou, and Kenji for Kaminari to go all out. The electric teenager was temporarily out of commission now, yeah, but the three students can at least make sure to restrain the fallen villains before going to look for the rest of their class.
That had been the idea. Kenji would like to know when he started to drop his guard around fallen enemies. He’s faced off his fair share of dangerous criminals before, so who knew that a few weeks away from Yokohama was enough for the Ability user’s danger sense to go a little dull.
“If you use your Quirks, I’ll kill this guy.” Kenji’s pretty sure that his Ability counts in this hostage situation.
There wasn’t much Kenji could do without giving himself away. All he could do was watch the Villain start to walk away with the teenager. If he used his Ability, there was a chance he wouldn’t make it on time. If he dared to even move, he would definitely not make it in time. He couldn’t call for help. The only people Kenji could have relied on were the two girls standing to his left who were just as lost as him. So much for training to be heroes. So much for being an armed detective.
Suddenly, Jirou’s face morphed into a smug smirk. “Electric-types like you and Kaminari are born winners, right?” That made the Villain stop. “I mean, even if you aren’t a Hero, there are a ton of jobs you could do.”
Kenji’s eyes widened in awe. He recognizes this tactic! Jirou has come to understand the art of having a sincere conversation with the enemy! Maybe she will find better words to make the Villain change his ways and--
Oh. Kenji made sure to not make his disappointment too apparent. He really thought Jirou was going to have a sincere conversation. She’s simply making small talk to distract him from her ear jack making its way to her amplifier. Kenji can’t be angry since it is a good plan, but if he was able to tell what she was aiming for, he’s sure the Villain who had managed to ambush them would notice as well.
“Give it up.” Exactly as Kenji thought. Still, it was a better attempt than Kenji could come up with. He commends her for thinking quickly although it almost cost her the hostage's life. Kenji agrees with the Villain about the ‘being too naive’ part. Then again, these kids grew up in a heavily protected society. They don’t know better.
It doesn’t take much longer for an opening to come. Snipe must be the hero to come to their aid, because the moment the Villain drops Kaminari with blood spilling from his arms, Kenji rushes forward to knock the rest of the recovered villains down. The fight is over.
“That was amazing, Jirou-san!” The students were making their way back to the buses and Kenji still couldn’t have enough of complimenting the three people he was sent away with. “I feel slightly hurt that you tried to trick that Villain with a conversation. I seriously thought you had come to understand the power of sincerity.”
Jirou scratched her cheek. Her smile was small and hesitant like she didn’t believe in the compliments being thrown her way. “My plan didn’t work though. Snipe ended up saving us and you took care of the remaining Villains afterwards. You were the amazing one, Miyazawa-san.”
Kenji furiously shook his head. “If you hadn’t distracted the Villain, Snipe wouldn’t have been able to help us. You were the only one who had a collected idea and stuck to it. I think the ability to stay calm in a situation like that is amazing!”
Of course, if Jirou had taken the hostage situation a little more seriously and not immediately thought she had the upper hand, she probably would’ve been able to save Kaminari without Snipe’s intervention. The girl doesn’t need to hear that. For a fifteen-year-old who never faced real danger, Kenji thinks she did well.
“Purple is just not it.”
Jirou peered at Kenji with confusion. “What?”
“Purple wouldn’t look good on me,” Kenji sighed with slumped shoulders. “No matter how much I think, I can’t imagine my hero costume looking good on me with purple.”
Tanizaki got the message. Purple is not the mole. Just like White, Sugar, and Blue. Fifteen more students to go.