Archive of Our Own ^beta

Yagi Toshinori had dealt with a seemingly endless amount of fear in his life.  From his early days as a hero, to losing his master, to fighting All For One, and so on.  But no matter how terrified he was underneath, the Symbol of Peace had learned to mask it with his ever-famous smile and laughter.

But this.  This wasn’t something Toshinori could smile through.

In front of him and the other staff members of UA was the live feed of their missing students.  Which students you ask?  Of course those in 1-A.  These kids couldn’t catch a break.  The villains had taken five of their students from a recent trip to the mall with a frankly terrifying warp quirk.  The power allowed the woman to transport people by making contact with the skin. Through facial recognition, Tsukauchi was able to identify her as Hikari Tachisaru who was registered with the quirk “Blink.”  According to the records, she should only be able to teleport small objects to locations of her choosing.  But it seemed either she had neglected to reveal her true abilities, or quirk-enhancing drugs were at play.  

Either way, Toshinori’s students were in trouble and there didn’t seem to be anything he could do about it.  Powerless and helpless, All Might had never felt less like a hero.

“Toshi.”  All Might snapped to attention.  Tsukauchi was looking at him with concern.  “You okay?”

“I’m alright.”  He assured his friend.  “Just worried.”  Naomasa gave him a tired smile.

“We’ll find them.  Those kids are tough.”  Naomasa told him.  “We’re working right now to trace this broadcast.  Nezu himself is lending a hand...paw?”  The detective’s attempt at humor earned him a grim smile from the ex-hero, but it was better than nothing.

“They’ve overcome so much as just children.” Toshinori murmured.  “I just wish the villains would leave them alone for a while.”

Naomasa shook his head with a rueful grin.  “I hope so too, but with how things have been I don’t see that happening anytime soon.  Especially not when your boy is involved.”

Toshinori raised an eyebrow.

“My boy?”  He asked.  Though he immediately knew doing so was a mistake as a glimmer of mischief entered his friend’s eye.

“Come now Toshi.”  Naomasa said with mirth despite the somber situation.  “Everytime we talk nowadays I hear about how “Young Midoriya” is doing.  Not that I mind.  You are always so happy to talk about him.”

Toshinori felt a blush creeping up.  He almost began to deny it, as always, with something like “he’s just my student!” but then remembered who he was talking to.  He could be honest with Naomasa.  Had to be, really.  Or the man would know.  Plus Naomasa had been through so much with him.  If anyone deserved the truth, it was him.

“He is my successor.”  He began and held up a hand to cut off the detective who was undoubtedly going to call him out for lying before he could finish, “But yes.  Just like Nana was to me...” he nearly whispered so as to hide the truth from the others on the opposite end of the room, “he has become family.”

Tsukauchi was giving him a genuine smile now.  “Don’t worry Toshi.  We’ll get your boy back.  And then you can tell him that yourself.”

All Might considered the idea for a moment.  He could see it now: Midoriya flushing an alarming shade of red and hiding his face, but surely smiling and crying.  Even just thinking about it made Toshinori’s heart swell with fondness for the boy who had become like a son to him.

“I think you’re right.”  He responded.  “When we get them back I’ll tell him.”  Naomasa nodded at his friend, glad to have found a moment of peace in the middle of the crisis at hand.  He knew Toshinori struggled with himself now that his time as a hero was over.  Anything he could do to ease the burden on the man’s shoulders was well worth his time.

The two men were interrupted by another teacher calling over, “All Might, detective!”  It was Present Mic.  The usually enthusiastic man was grim and somber as the rest of them and it was especially easy to tell he was upset with how he wasn’t shouting.  “The kids are waking up.”  The two exchanged glances and hurried over to the screen, the feeling of peace found in their conversation lost as the severity of the situation took over once more.

On the monitor Toshinori could see movement.  A familiar head of green hair stirred slowly as Izuku Midoriya woke up.  Toshi watched his successor’s eyes widen with the realization of what had happened.  The boy looked to where he and his classmates were chained to the floor with alarm.  He stood up and immediately began to try to wake them up.

The first to respond to his efforts was Tenya Iida.  Said boy blearily shook himself awake.

“Midoriya?”  He asked wearily.  “What’s going on?”

“Iida!  Are you alright?”  Midoriya asked him.

“I seem to be fine.”  The taller boy said after a moment of checking himself over.  “Where are we?”  Midoriya shook his head in confusion.

“I’m not sure.  A warehouse of some kind.”  He answered.  “I think that woman at the mall did something to us.”

“I see.”  Iida responded with alarm.  “Let’s try to wake the others.”  Midoriya nodded with determination. 

The two worked together to wake the other three, and Toshinori felt the familiar pride of seeing his students’ bravery.  Despite surely being frightened and confused, his students were pushing through the fear and showing their courage.

After a minute or so, the boys’ efforts bore fruit as the other three woke up.  Said students were Shouto Todoroki, Ochako Uraraka, and Minoru Mineta.  Toshinori recalled Midoriya texting him how the group of four were joined by the purple boy after Midoriya had extended the kid an offer to go with them upon seeing him by himself.  Toshi’s boy never ran out of kindness.

“What’s happening?!”  Mineta cried out, shaking.  

“We’ve been taken captive, it seems.”  Todoroki said in his ever blunt tone.

“Why?!  I didn’t do anything!”  Mineta shouted.

“Mineta!”  Iida scolded, “Our situation is not ideal, but for now we are all 

uninjured.  Panicking will solve nothing.  Please calm down.”

“Iida’s right.”  Midoriya confirmed.  “We have to remain calm.  At least we’re together.  There doesn’t seem to be anyone around.”   He continued, looking around the room nervously.

“Can anyone use their quirk?”  Uraraka asked, the slightest tremor in her voice.  Midoriya shook his head.

“I already tried.”  He told her, clearly frustrated.  “I think they injected us with quirk suppressants.”  Todoroki nodded in agreement.

“I can’t activate mine either.”  He said after a moment.

“What do you think they want from us, Deku?”  Uraraka asked, trying to mask her fear.

“It could be a few things…”  Midoriya started.  As he spoke he slowly scanned the room once more.  The five were chained down in the middle of a room, dim lights shining down on the kids but leaving the rest of the large space dark.  The windows were covered with metal plating and the greenette got the idea that the room had more to offer, but they were unable to see anything in the darkness.

“They could want information on UA, or maybe our teachers, or…”  He paused realizing another potential reason.  The others shifted in worry, their chains clinking with the movement.

“Midoriya?”  Iida spoke up after a few seconds of silence.  “What were you going to say?”

Midoriya turned to the taller student with a grimace.

“It’s possible...that they want to kill us.”  Uraraka gasped and Mineta began to cry.  Back in UA, the teachers all reacted differently.  Some, like Eraserhead and Snipe flinched minutely.  Toshinori was sure that just like him, the fact that their students had to once again fear death from a villain was horrific to experience.

“Society is unsure of heroes as it is after the events at Kamino.”  Midoriya continued.

“Yeah.”  Todoroki added.  “If hero students were to be killed with the heroes unable to help, public opinion of heroes would fall even lower.”

“But that’s not fair!”  Uraraka burst out.  “It’s not the heroes fault that villains have been grouping up and targeting us!  Our teachers do everything they can to save us.”

“But look where that got us!”  Mineta interrupted, clearly looking for someone to blame for their kidnapping.  “We’re trapped and they’re nowhere to be seen!”

“Mineta!”  Iida’s tone portrayed just how displeased he was with the boy.  “We are very lucky to have the teachers we do.  They do so much for us.  Do you not remember how Mr. Aizawa fought for us at the USJ?  Or how much All Might sacrificed for Bakugo and all of Japan at Kamino?”

“Iida’s right.”  Midoriya added.  “Our teachers are pro heroes, the best of the best.  But they can’t be everywhere.  And besides…”  Toshinori’s heartbeat sped up as his successor’s eyes locked on to the camera almost as if looking at him.

“I don’t think they’re going to kill us.  They probably would have done so already, as morbid as that is.  And, it looks like we’re being recorded.”  The others’ eyes jumped to where Midoriya was looking and all five acknowledged that they were being watched from somewhere.

“So…”  Uraraka said.  “They can see whatever we’re doing…but I’m sure if we put our heads together we can think of something!”

Iida began to reply, but it was at that instant that the kids were joined by someone new.  Five sets of eyes snapped to the right as a door opened at the far end of the room.  Toshinori was sure everyone else in the room with him felt the dread he was experiencing.  With bated breath they waited for the villain to enter the light.

The kids were clearly trying to put on a brave face, and they were doing quite well despite Mineta’s sniffling.  For a short while there was nothing but the villain’s slow footsteps, clearly intending to intimidate the teens.

From the darkness stepped a man, likely in his early 20s from what Toshinori could tell.  He was of average height, but his short purple hair looked almost like it was a liquid.  Perhaps from his quirk?  It was too early to tell.  

“What do you want with us?”  Midoriya asked with a steady voice.  Toshi was simultaneously prouder than ever and terrified.  For there was his brave boy facing down their kidnapper with righteous fury, but who knew what said man wanted with them.

“Ah ah.  Not yet,”  The man began.  “You are a brave one, Izuku Midoriya.”  Midoriya shifted in alarm at the use of his full name.  Toshinori sometimes hated the publicity the Sports Festival gave their students.  “First...an introduction.”  The man smiled, malice clear in his gaze.

“You can call me Caustic.”  The now named villain continued.  The man reached down and revealed a remote from his pocket.  With a touch, the room became illuminated in dim lighting.  From the view of the camera, Toshinori and the others couldn’t see anything new that had been previously hidden, but they did notice something in the space between the camera and the students. It was a small post with a metal hoop attached.  From the lack of the teens’ reactions there didn’t seem to be anything else concerning beyond their field of view.

“Let me just say,”  Caustic continued, “That so long as you all cooperate, none of you will be harmed.  We’re not here to kill or injure you unless you make things difficult.”  The villain began to pace slowly in front of the students.

“In fact,” he said, the sinister grin still on his face, “I have no issues with you all.  I would love for you to go free once I have what I need.  You may have noticed that we have an audience.”  With this he turned towards the camera and upon seeing his face Toshinori was struck with a feeling of familiarity.  Did he know this man?  He sure seemed familiar.  But he had never heard of a villain named Caustic before.

“What do we have on this guy?”  Aizawa suddenly asked.  Tsukauchi shook his head.  

“We have no records of him.”  He said searching through a tablet.  “Possibly part of an organized crime group?  Our analysts who aren’t trying to find the students are searching for more.”  Aizawa nodded grimly and the group turned back to the screen.  As they did so, Toshinori narrowed his sunken eyes as the man seemed more and more familiar.  It felt like the answer was just out of reach.

“What is it that you want from us?”  Midoriya asked again.  He and the others, except for Mineta, stared down Caustic.

“It’s simple really.”  The man started, “I need information.  One of your pathetic teachers ruined everything for me.  He put my father in prison for life, short as it was.  Within a few years he was killed by other inmates in a brawl.  I should have been able to grow up knowing him.  I’ve spent my life since the day he died preparing for the time when I will avenge him.”  As he spoke, Caustic began to slowly step closer to the group, voice growing louder and louder.  “The one who needs to pay, is none other than the man himself.  All Might!”

Toshinori’s eyes widened in shock as the gazes of everyone in the room turned to him.  

“Yagi.”  Aizawa ground out.  “Who is this guy?”  

“I don’t know!”  Toshinori exclaimed.  “He does seem familiar, but…”

“All Might defeated countless villains in his time as a hero.”  Cementoss spoke up.  “He is not to blame for what happened to Caustic.”  Toshi cast the Cement hero a grateful look, but was desperately wracking his brain for the identity of Caustic’s father.  He hadn’t heard about any of the villains he took down being killed in prison, but generally such news didn’t make it to the public.

On the screen, Midoriya looked deep in concentration.

“Your father…”  He suddenly said.  All eyes snapped to the boy.  “Was he Toxic Chainsaw?”  The villain seemed surprised and everyone in the room at UA turned to Toshi once more.  That was it!  Ayato Sankizu also known as the villain Toxic Chainsaw had been one of All Might’s toughest opponents.  Nothing on All For One, but still a difficult battle nonetheless.  Toshinori hadn’t known the man had a son.  But the boy had hair made of slime, just like his father.  He could only hope Caustic’s quirk was not as deadly as his father’s.

“You are a bright one!”  Caustic exclaimed.  “I thought that was the case, listening to you earlier about our reasons for your kidnapping.  But now you’ve proven it!  How did you figure it out?”

“Your hair is just like his.”  Midoriya said carefully.  “And I used to follow all of All Might’s battles and their aftermaths.  I read about his death in prison and made the connection to you.”

“You are something else, kid.”  Caustic said, shaking his head.  “Being so sharp...you must realize that helping me is the best course of action.”

Midoriya narrowed his eyes in anger and Toshinori’s chest constricted.

“We will never help you kill All Might.”  He stated.  Every teacher in UA sucked in a breath.

For a moment Caustic stood facing the kids, seemingly contemplative.  Instead of reacting with rage as the viewers at UA feared, he simply sighed.

“Well.”  He began, sounding disappointed, but anyone could tell the man was anything but.  “If you want to be difficult, I will make things harder for you all.  But get this!”  He stated, clapping his hands together.  “All I need from you is his name.”  The students glanced at each other in confusion, and those at UA did as well.

Caustic turned to the camera, the grin still on his face, and called out “Bloodhound!  Get in here.”  He then turned towards the door.  At UA the group turned to Tsukauchi again, but he simply said,

“Nothing.  But with codenames there isn’t much we can do if a person hasn’t exposed themselves before.”

The door opened to reveal a figure completely obscured by a hood.  They were extremely tall and lean.  The man made his way to the group and turned to Caustic.

“This,”  Caustic said, “is Bloodhound.  He has a very special quirk.  He calls it “Track.”  It’s not very cleverly named, but it is quite amazing.  So long as he has someone’s full birth name and some of their DNA, he can find them no matter where they go.”  Caustic smiled at the students once more.  “Some associates of ours in the Yakuza found some hair of All Mights in the wreckage at Kamino and took it for their experiments.  I was able to purchase some from them and am now one step away from killing the man who took everything from me.  However, All Might’s name is a very well kept secret.  All traces of it have been erased everywhere we have searched.”  Caustic began to walk up to the kids.  “We can’t go after him at UA.  He’s too well defended there.  But with Bloodhound’s power, we can find him and end him.”  At this point the villain was only a foot or so away from the group.  They were now glaring at the man for threatening their teacher, but Toshinori could see the fear underneath.  And Mineta was still just sniffling away, watching the men with terror.

“You saw earlier that we’re recording this.”  Caustic continued, half turning his body to point at the camera.  “And we’re currently sending the signal to that hero school of yours so All Might can watch and know that it is his fault that you all are trapped here.  His fault that your lives are in danger.”

“But why?”  Todoroki exclaimed in confusion.  The elemental quirk user was clearly furious at their situation as he scowled at the two men.  “You’re just warning All Might that you’re after him.”  Caustic laughed.

“With Bloodhound’s quirk there is nowhere he can be safe once we have the name.  We’ll find him no matter where he goes.  No matter how long it takes, I will kill All Might and avenge my father.  With this video he can see that there is nothing he can do to help you or himself.” With that he nodded at Bloodhound and the cloaked man revealed a gun. The weapon was pointed at the kids with a steady hand.

“Now.”  Caustic continued, hands behind his back and tone smug.  “Tell me his name.”

Toshinori felt his stomach drop.  Not many people knew his name, not even the students.  UA’s staff were among the few that knew.  But he and young Midoriya spent so much time together.  He could only hope his successor would give it up to save them.  He knew it was unlikely.  The boy was stubborn.  If not, surely they would be able to find them soon.

“Well?”  Caustic asked after a few moments.  “What is it?”  He turned to Uraraka.  “How about you?  Uraraka right?  What is it?”

“We don’t know.”  She said firmly, but with terror clear in her eyes.  “He doesn’t tell us and we respect his privacy.”  Her gaze kept flicking over to the gun in Bloodhound’s hand.  

“Is that so?”  Caustic asked softly.  “Well...I have reason to believe that All Might has taken a shining to your class.  He spends a great deal of time with you all as compared to the rest of UA.  I have a hard time believing that none of you know.”  He turned to Iida.  “What about you, little Ingenium?”  Iida tensed up, but seemed relieved that the attention was off Uraraka.

“Like she said.  We do not know.”  He said.   Caustic sighed.  He turned to Bloodhound.

“Bloodhound.  If you will.”  He said, sounding bored.  The kids turned to him in shock, but before they could do or say anything a gunshot rang out.  At UA the viewers jolted in shock as Uraraka let out an agonized shout.  She had been shot in the bicep, a  non lethal shot.  The others began to shout.

“Stop it!”  Iida yelled.  “We are telling the truth we don’t know!”  Midoriya had his hands on the wound, trying to stop the bleeding.

“Leave her alone!”  He spat out.  “We can’t tell you what we don’t know!”

“Oh my God!  Oh my God!”  Mineta was screeching.  “We’re going to die!”

At UA Toshinori’s eyes felt glued to the screen in horror, but they were pulled away when Aizawa slammed his fist into the coffee table leaving a nasty crack.  Present Mic immediately grabbed his arm speaking to him softly.  The Erasure hero turned to Tsukauchi after a moment.

“We have to find them.  Now!”  He told the detective.  “Why aren’t we out searching?”

“They could be anywhere in the city.  It would take days to search everything.  We need to have you ready to deploy as soon as we find their location.”  Naomasa gave the hero a stern but understanding look.  “I know they’re your students.  But for now we just have to wait for Nezu and my analysts to find them.  Or for Caustic to make a mistake.”  

Toshinori considered Aizawa for a moment.  Everyone claimed the man was cold and heartless.  But now more than ever the blonde felt a kinship to him.  He was sure Aizawa was just as furious as he was.  Toshinori turned back to the screen as Caustic spoke again.

“SILENCE!”  The man shouted, cutting off the students’ enraged responses.  They quieted except for Uraraka’s pained gasps as Bloodhound cocked the weapon again.   Midoriya removed his hands for Todoroki to bandage the wound with the strips he had torn from his shirt.  Uraraka gave him a thankful look.

“Be grateful I didn’t just kill her.”  Bloodhound suddenly spoke.  His voice was deep and menacing, suiting his frightening image.

Caustic laughed, clearly enjoying the pain and fear of his captives.  “How about now?”  He asked.  “Want to tell me yet?  I don’t want to kill children.  But make no mistake.”  He smirked before continuing, “I’m willing to do whatever it takes to get what I want.”  While Midoriya was helping Todoroki tie the makeshift bandage, the heterochromatic boy spoke up.

“We’re telling the truth.  We don’t know.”  He said, anger clear in how tense he was. 

“Hmm…”  Caustic paced once again.  He then stopped and his eyes locked onto a new target.  “What about...you!”  The man pointed to Mineta, and the boy immediately started to panic even more.

“I don’t know!”  He yelped.  “I promise!”  Caustic stalked forward.  He stopped right in front of Mineta who was on the far end of the group.  The kid was shaking in terror.  Caustic tilted his head.

“You sure about that?”  He questioned.  “I’m sure you wouldn’t want to get shot too.”  Mineta started floundering.

“Please!  I really don’t know!”  Caustic sighed and shook his head.  He turned to Bloodhound once more and everyone involved and watching tried to prepare themselves.  

But.  Before Caustic could speak to his lackey, Mineta spoke up once more.

“Wait!  Midoriya must know!”  All heads turned to the kid, Iida, Uraraka, and Todoroki looking at their classmate in horror while Midoriya appeared to be in shock.

“Oh?”  Caustic practically purred.  “Why’s that?”  He turned to the green haired boy.

“He’s All Might’s favorite!”  Mineta continued, desperate to save his own skin no matter the cost.  “Everybody knows it!”

“Shut. Up.”  Todoroki snarled.  Back at UA the staff tensed even further, realizing what was to come now.  

“He’s going to have to tell him.”  Naomasa said quietly.

“I know.  And I want him to.”  Toshinori said without hesitation.  “Whatever it takes to get them out of there.”  But his tired old heart was working overtime now that the attention was on his boy.  Just tell him Izuku!   He thought anxiously.

“I see!”  Caustic said gleefully to the teens.  “So.  Midoriya.  Things are going to get far worse if you don’t tell me.”  He got right in the boy’s face.  “What is it?”

Midoriya was silent for a moment before he said with steel in his voice: “I don’t know.  Even if I did I wouldn’t tell you.”  Caustic sighed and turned away for a moment.  Those at UA could see his exasperated expression.

“I didn’t want it to come to this.  But here we are.”  He said, faux-sympathy in his voice.  “Bloodhound.  Bring Midoriya to the post.”

“What?!”  Iida exclaimed as the other criminal nodded and stepped forward.  He went to grab Midoriya’s chain but stopped when Iida and Todoroki lunged forward.

“You’re not touching him!”  Iida shouted.

“Leave Deku alone!”  Uraraka spat through her pain.  Toshinori imagined she would have leapt to her friend’s defense as well if she wasn’t injured.  Bloodhound stopped for a moment before snapping forward and placing the gun against Midoriya’s head.  Toshinori’s heart stopped.

“Stay back.  Or I’ll pull the trigger.”  The tall man said softly.  “We’ll figure out the name with or without him.  You decide if you want his brain splattered on the floor.”  The other students recoiled in terror.  They had no choice but to step back or risk Midoriya’s life.

“It’s fine guys.”  Midoriya said shakily.  “I’ll be fine.”  Caustic laughed as Bloodhound unlocked the bottom end of Midoriya’s chain and led him to the post closer to the camera.

“You sure will!”  He said jovially, but then smiled showing far too many teeth.  “So long as you tell me what I need to know.”  Bloodhound clasped Midoriya’s chain to the post.  Now the boy stood alone against their captors.  Caustic smirked and walked up to the student placing a hand on his wrist.  Midoriya flinched away and leaned as far as possible from the man.  Caustic just laughed again.  “Midoriya.  Last chance before things really get ugly.  What is All Might’s name?”  Toshinori had to remind himself to breathe as Midoriya stared into Caustic’s eyes in defiance.

“I don’t know.”  He said plainly.  It felt like the world had stopped as the viewers waited helplessly to see what awaited their student.

Caustic simply sighed before speaking up.  “Do you remember my father’s quirk, Midoriya?”  He asked.  Midoriya stayed silent until the villain spoke again.  “Fine, I see you’re not going to talk just yet.  His quirk was called Toxic Acid.  From his sweat glands he created a deadly acid that destroyed organic matter. He was famous for coating the blades of his chainsaw with the solution so that anyone cut by his blades would melt.”  Toshinori vividly remembered the effects of the quirk.  He had seen the bodies of those the villain killed.  They were some of the most gruesome he had ever witnessed.  Defeating the villain should not have been such an ordeal, but the man had been extremely fast and clever.  Toshi could only pray his son didn’t have the same quirk.

“Sadly,”  Caustic continued, “I do not share my father’s quirk.”  Midoriya watched the man warily.  His wrist was still firmly in the villain’s grasp.  “However,”  Caustic continued slowly, with no lack of malicious joy in his tone, “I did receive a quirk that we can have some fun with.  I call it...Poison Touch.  It allows me to secrete a poison from my palms that burns away at the skin.  It is nowhere near as deadly as my father’s acid, but I have learned throughout the years that it is incredibly painful.”  

Everyone in UA realized what was coming.  None of them dealt with it well.  But they knew they had to keep it together.  They each knew they were going to save their kids.  They just had to hope they would be okay until then.  Toshinori was not handling it well.  He needed to do something now!  Izuku was going to be tortured!  He didn’t realize he was starting to hyper-ventilate until Naomasa grabbed his shoulder.

“Toshinori.” He said firmly.  “He’s going to be alright.  We’re going to get him out.  But you need to calm down.  You don’t need to see this.”

“No!”  The ex-hero refused.  “I can’t help him right now.  I need to be here.  To be with him however I can.”  Naomasa sighed, but nodded.

“I understand.”  He said softly.  Toshinori just took a deep breath and looked back to the screen, heart in his throat.

“So.”  Caustic was saying.  “What will it be, Midoriya?  Will you tell me?”  Izuku looked at him without hesitation.

“I don’t know what it is.”  He said with finality.  Caustic just shrugged like he wasn’t about to torture a child.

“You brought this upon yourself then.”  He said casually but then paused.  “No...All Might is at fault for this!”  He laughed to himself.  

“No!”  Izuku stated firmly.  “It’s not his fault that your father died.  He stopped him from hurting innocents.  You chose to spend your life this way.  You could have easily been a hero with your quirk!”  Caustic tensed up.  Had he been facing the camera, Toshi was sure he would have seen him lose his smile. 

“How dare you!”  He spat out.  “You brat!  You don’t know anything!”  And with that the worst moments of Toshinori’s life began.  Izuku immediately gasped in pain and Caustic stepped aside as he activated his quirk so the camera could get a proper view of what he was doing.  And it was horrific.  What looked like steam was rising from Izuku’s skin as the boy began to try to pull his hand away reflexively.  Caustic laughed.

“How’s it feel, kid?”  He shouted maniacally.  “I gotta say, you’re handling it like a champ!”  As the man cackled, Izuku’s eyes began to water and his face paled drastically from the pain.  “Even hardened thugs scream right off the bat!  What are they teaching you at that school?”  The man continued, obviously taking enormous pleasure from his actions.  

Toshinori knew his successor had a high pain tolerance.  He had proven it many times, and it was high enough that it frightened the ex-hero.  What had his boy gone through that made him able to shrug off broken bones so easily?  So he understood how Izuku was keeping it together.  But that didn’t make his boy’s pain any easier to watch.

The steaming was becoming louder and finally Izuku couldn’t take it anymore.  He screamed .  His boy was screaming in agony and Toshinori Could. Not. Do. Anything.  Present Mic along with Midnight and a few others began to shout.  Of course their students couldn’t hear them, but they likely didn’t realize that in their fury.  Behind his boy the others were desperately struggling at their chains

“GET OFF OF HIM!”  Todoroki demanded.  The normally stoic boy’s eyes were wide with panic.

“STOP IT!”  Uraraka screamed.  She was crying, desperately trying to pull herself free despite her wound.

“LET HIM GO!”  Iida shouted.  “WE DON’T KNOW IT JUST STOP!”

“I’M SORRY MIDORIYA!  PLEASE STOP!”  Mineta called from the back.  The kid was still terrified, but he seemed to have realized what he had done.  But no matter how they pleaded, Caustic kept going.  

“How about now?!”  He asked with a mad glint in his eye.  “Want to tell me now?!” 

Izuku stopped screaming long enough to choke out “I-I told y-you!!  I don’t know!” 

Caustic just grabbed the boy tighter and Izuku’s screaming amped up even more and he began to writhe in immeasurable agony.  It was only after nearly a minute when Toshinori realized that his boy’s skin was dripping off that Caustic finally stopped.  Izuku’s screams faded into agonized moans and Caustic stepped back from the boy.

“I’ll give you some time to think.”  He said, smiling down at the boy like a hawk upon a dying mouse.  “Bloodhound.”  He called.  “Come on.  Let’s give them a minute.”  The audience watched, still silent in horror as the two left the room.  Izuku seemed only partially conscious as the others called out to him.

“Midoriya!”  They called. “Deku!”  He wasn’t responding.  “Please.  Wake up!”

Toshinori’s attention was taken away as Naomasa’s grasp on his shoulder tightened.  He turned to see the man holding a tissue out to him.  With a sort of muted confusion he took the offering and only then felt the wetness on his face.  Looking closer he realized Naomasa was saying something.  Somehow pushing past the terror sound funneled back in, but Toshinori knew he would never forget the sounds of his boy’s screams.

“-shinori?  Toshi!”  Naomasa was asking him.  Toshinori cleared his throat.

“Naomasa?”  He croaked out.  Naomasa sighed in relief. 

“Nezu says they’re close. We’re going to get ready to go shortly.  I think it would be best if you considered stay-”

“No.  No way in hell.  No force on this earth could keep me here.”  Toshinori was going to tear Caustic apart, quirk or no.  The detective just accepted that, knowing there was little to no chance of his friend staying behind. 

“Alright.  But you’re staying with me and wearing a vest.”  Naomasa told him.  It was only then that Toshinori remembered there were others in the room as Aizawa suddenly stood straighter as he took a call on his phone.  He quickly turned to the others.

“They found them.  Let’s go.”  The exhausted man had never sounded so livid .  Toshinori never thought he and Aizawa would get along, but in this moment they were united.  These people were going to pay for what they’d done to their kids.

Naomasa handed Toshinori his tablet which now displayed the camera feed.  “So we’ll know what to expect.”  He stated as if Toshinori needed a reason to stay with his boy.  “Let’s go!”

In mere minutes a force of furious heroes were on their way to the location.  A few had to stay behind like Cementoss and Vlad King, but they understood the need to defend the school.  They couldn’t all go to get their kids no matter how much they wanted to.  All Might rode with Tsukauchi, Aizawa, Yamada, and the cat-headed Sansa who drove the police van.  Midnight, Ectoplasm, and Snipe were riding in the other van.  They were a mere 15 minutes away from the warehouse.  Toshinori was glued to the screen watching his boy who still hadn’t responded to his friends’ calls.  His vigil was interrupted after a minute or so by Naomasa.

“Toshi.”  He said uneasily.  Toshinori tore himself from the screen to give his friend his attention.  Something in the other’s tone was off.  “I have to ask you something.” 

“What is it?”  He asked.  Naomasa looked like he had realized something awful.  Was something else wrong?  What could it be?

“You know my quirk doesn’t work through video.”  The detective stated.  Toshinori absently noted that Aizawa and Yamada’s attention was on the two of them as well.  “Because of this flaw, I have studied psychology and reactions to know when people lie so that I can do my job with or without my quirk.  When Midoriya answered Caustic that last time…”  Naomasa hesitated.  “He...well he didn’t show any of them.”  Toshinori’s blood froze as he realized what his friend was suggesting.  But that didn’t make any sense!

“Midoriya does...know your name, right?”  The detective finished cautiously.  Across from them Aizawa stood up straighter in alarm and even Yamada looked shocked.

“Of course he does!”  Toshinori exclaimed.  “I told him-” In that moment Toshinori raked his mind.  He must have told him?  Right?  The one person who deserved his name more than any other?  When he gave him his quirk?  No...When he was injured at the Sports Festival?  When he faced the hero killer?  After Toshinori lost his power?  When they were training together?  Toshinori felt like his world was ending as he realized the truth.  The kid who never called him anything but All Might.  He never told him.  He never told him!  This kid, his boy, his Izuku who was his whole world!  The kid he would die for, the one who gave him a reason to get up everyday just to see him becoming the most incredible hero the world had ever seen.

He’d never told Izuku his name.

Why hadn’t the kid asked?  ...No.  Of course fanboy Izuku wouldn’t want to ask anything of his hero.  He could barely get the kid to ask for a break when he really needed it, never mind his name that was a well-kept secret.  

Toshinori was without a doubt the greatest idiot to ever walk the earth.  He thought his boy was just trying to protect him from Caustic...but because of Toshinori’s negligence there was nothing Izuku could do to get his torturer to stop.

Toshi was brought out of his despair by his head getting snapped to the side as Aizawa punched him across the face.

“Shouta!  Stop!”  Yamada exclaimed, holding him back.  “This isn’t helping anything!  We have to work together to get our little listeners out.”  Aizawa stepped away, seething.  Toshinori rubbed his sore jaw as Naomasa looked him over.

“Yagi. You moron. ”  Aizawa hissed. “That kid just experienced unimaginable pain.  He couldn’t get out of it no matter what he did because of you. Everyone knows how you see him.  You spend every spare moment with the Problem Child.  How could you possibly have never told him your name?”  Toshinori just shook his head.  He had never been so ashamed in his life.  There was no way Izuku saw how important he was to him if he wasn’t even given his name.

“Toshi.”  Naomasa said sadly.  He turned to see his friend eyeing him in sorrow. “When we get him back.  You have to make this right.  That kid loves you and he deserves better.”  Toshinori could do nothing but nod, feeling his sore jaw twinge.  He deserved far worse.

It was then that he remembered to look back at the screen.  Izuku’s friends were still trying to get his attention.

“Come on Deku!”  Uraraka was asking desperately.

“Midoriya!  Izuku!”  Iida called out.

Finally, the boy seemed to be waking up.  But waking also meant returning to the pain and everyone in the van heard Izuku’s strangled scream as his injury made itself known.  Toshinori couldn’t see the damage due to the boy cradling his arm to his chest.  

“You with us Midoriya?”  Todoroki inquired urgently.  Midoriya looked over to them before nodding.  He took a few moments to try and collect himself and reduced his strangled sounds to much quieter gasps and groans.

“Y-yes.”  He gasped out.  “Sorry guys.”  Uraraka shook her head rapidly.

“You have nothing to be sorry for Deku!”  She assured him, tears still leaking at seeing her friend in so much pain.  “We’re just glad you’re awake.”

“How’s y-your arm?”  He breathed.  Toshinori felt the fondness for the boy once again, though the crushing guilt was making it hard to feel much of anything.

“I’m fine!”  Uraraka assured him.  “The bleeding stopped.  We’re just worried about you right now.”

“I’ll be fine.”  Izuku assured them.

“Midoriya…”  Mineta suddenly spoke up.  He had been mostly silent this whole time, likely realizing he wasn’t anyone’s favorite person right now.  “Why didn’t you just tell him All Might’s name?”

“I would never give up All Might.  I wouldn’t give up anyone.”  Izuku responded with a surprisingly steady voice.

“Midoriya…”  Iida said before trailing off.  None of them seemed to know what to say.  All four exchanged worried looks.

“Midoriya.”  Todoroki spoke up after a few moments.  “I’m sure it’s unbearable, but we need to see if there’s anything we can do for your arm.  What we do now could decide if you retain function or not.”

Midoriya flinched at the reminder of his injury and Toshinori watched with sympathy.  His student already had enough to worry about what with his previous injuries.  Now a crazed villain had melted part of his skin on the same arm that was already speckled with scars. 

Midoriya visibly took a breath to prepare himself before revealing the wound.  Until that moment his injured arm had been tucked into his torso in an instinctual desire to protect himself.  Toshinori gasped right along with his students after witnessing the damage.  Across from him Aizawa’s jaw was clenched as Mic tried to keep him calm.  Toshi hadn’t realized the others had begun listening, but he imagined they couldn’t help but yearn for any information regarding their students’ wellbeing.

On the screen it was difficult to make out the extent of the damage, but due to Midoriya’s proximity to the camera he could at least see that a large amount of flesh was missing.  Some of which, he realized with horror, was likely melted onto the floor next to his boy.  The wound looked excruciating and Toshinori felt his old scar twinge in sympathy.  Toshi wasn’t sure if there would be any lasting damage to Izuku.  But either way his boy was bound to have yet another scar to add to his collection.

All chatter was cut short as a door banged open in the warehouse.  Toshinori immediately felt dread nagging at his heart as his students quieted in anticipation.  Caustic appeared though this time with no cocky swagger to his step.  Instead he stormed into the room furiously, and wasted no time addressing the kidnapped students.

“Alright brats.”  He spat, striding over to Midoriya.  “You’ve had a rest.  Now I need my answer.”  He grabbed the greenette’s face, eliciting a gasp from the boy as well as protests from his friends.  “SHUT UP!”  He shouted, furious.  Toshinori couldn’t see Midoriya’s face, but in the background of the video the other kids’ eyes were wide with shock and terror.  Toshi’s own heart felt as if it would never beat again as he tried to breath past the possibility of his boy being killed in front of him.

“Last chance.”  Caustic hissed.  “What is his name?”  Please my boy, Toshinori thought, Lie, tell him something, anything!  There was a brief but paralyzing moment of silence before Midoriya answered. 

“I don’t know.”  He answered firmly, not an ounce of fear in his voice even as Toshi’s heart sank.  Beside the retired hero, Tsukauchi sucked in a sharp breath, but Toshinori didn’t have time to consider what that meant.  Distantly he noticed no one in the cabin of the van was breathing as they awaited what would come next.

Caustic held Midoriya’s face for a few seconds with a thoughtful look on his face.  Behind the two the other students were in a similar state of shock.  Then, to the surprise of everyone, Caustic let go. Every observer let out a breath of relief.  Midoriya peered up at his captor warily as Caustic chuckled.

“Alright, alright.”  The man said.  “You’ve really got heart kid!  You’re the first who hasn’t spilled after a session with my quirk.  That’s something to be proud of!”  Midoriya flinched away as Caustic mockingly patted his head. “I can tell this isn’t going to work.  You won’t give him up to save yourself.”  Caustic stepped back from Midoriya.  “But…”  The man turned to the camera with an eerie gleam in his eyes.  “I bet you’ll tell me if it’s one of your little friends on the line.”  With that the villain began to make his way over to the other students.  Caustic took slow steps, likely trying to terrify his captives further in anticipation of who he would choose.

“Stop!”  Midoriya shouted, his voice still hoarse from screaming.  “I’m the one you want!  Leave them alone!”  Those listening in the van were reminded again of how selfless their Problem Child was.

Caustic stopped short of the other students.  He turned back towards Midoriya and the camera.  “Yes.” He began, “You are the one I want.  And if this is what I have to do to make you tell me the truth, so be it.”  With that the man turned back towards the students and reached a hand out for Tenya Iida.

The others began shouting their protests and Iida appeared to brace himself.  In the van the onlookers were frozen again in anticipation.

But, before Caustic could continue, a slam was heard as the warehouse door smashed open once more.  All heads snapped to the door.

“Caustic!”  It was Bloodhound’s voice.  “Heroes are on the way.  We’ve got minutes.”

“Damn it!”  Caustic snapped.  “Call Blinker.  Tell her to get here now.  We need to get out of here.”  Those watching could assume “Blinker” was the woman who had taken the children in the first place.

“Looks like you all get to rest a bit longer before the interrogation continues.”  He said to the students.  “And as for our audience.”  The man turned to the camera.  “I think that’s enough.  All Might knows now that I’m coming to kill him after I’m done with his students.”  With that Caustic retrieved a remote from his pocket and pressed a button.  The screen went black much to the despair of those watching.

“Sansa.”  Aizawa called out urgently.  “How long?”

“We’re two minutes out.”  The cat-headed man responded immediately, his voice sounding grim but determined.

“We have to beat their teleporter.”  Tsukauchi said quietly.  “Or else it’s very likely we’ll lose the students.  Fortunately it seems our villains were overconfident in their abilities to get what they wanted.”

“They weren’t ready for how strong our little listeners are, I think.”  Present Mic spoke up.  “We’re going to get them out of there.”  The normally goofy man said seriously.  

The final minute of the ride was silent as the men prepared themselves.  Toshinori’s thoughts were racing as he slid into the bullet-proof vest Tsukauchi brought for him.  He had to save his students.  He had to get his boy out of there safely so he could apologize profusely and do whatever it took to make up for being such a terrible mentor.  He’d tell the kid his whole life story, even the dreary parts about his quirkless childhood if Izuku so desired.  And if he got to tear Caustic to shreds in the process of saving his boy, so be it.

Finally, the van came to a halt, and the group burst out of the doors.  Tsukauchi immediately barked out orders.

“Eraser, Mic go ahead.  We’ll be right behind you!”  The plain-looking man shouted.  Aizawa was already sprinting ahead, but Mic turned to nod quickly at the two before dashing ahead.  Behind them, the other vans were coming to a halt.

Toshinori began to rush forward but was stopped by Tsukauchi’s firm grip on his arm.  All Might turned to his friend, eyes alight with protective fury.

“I understand how you’re feeling Toshi, and I know this is hard to hear,”  Tsukauchi said firmly, “but as you are you’re likely to get killed.  You’re no good to your boy dead.  Just wait for the rest of the group and then we can head in.  You know Aizawa.  He’ll sooner proclaim he loves you than let anything happen to his students.”  Toshinori felt himself deflate (emotionally instead of physically for once) as he realized his friend was right no matter how much he hated it.

It only took a minute or so for the rest of the rescue group to gather, consisting of mostly police as well as other UA heroes like Midnight and Snipe.  As the group gathered, they heard a few gunshots from inside and could only hope Aizawa and Yamada were okay. Finally, Tsukauchi decided they were ready.

“Alright let’s go!”  He shouted, and they charged in.  “First priority is to rescue the students!”  The detective called out as they moved in.  Toshinori was a man on a mission.  Even without One For All, he was a force to be reckoned with when he needed to be, and no one would stop him from getting to his boy.

Immediately inside was a nearly empty room with high ceilings as one would expect from a warehouse.  The group spotted the tied up Bloodhound struggling on the floor.  The man had been secured firmly in capture tape and was being stood over by Eraserhead and Present Mic.  Yamada was favoring his right leg, but Toshinori didn’t see any blood, so he had likely just taken a hard hit.

“What’s the situation?”  Tsukauchi asked the two.  Aizawa turned to them.

“Bloodhound put up a decent fight.  We haven’t seen Caustic or Blinker.”  The man answered rapidly.  “We assume he and the students are in the next room.  We’re ready to head in when you are, detective.”  Tsukauchi didn’t plan on wasting any time.

“Let’s go then!”  He declared.

Without wasting another moment they burst through the door with Aizawa leading the charge.  They were joined in the room by a handful of police officers as well as Midnight.  The group came to a stop after seeing what lay ahead. 

In the middle of the room was Midoriya and the other students who had turned to them in shock.  But what concerned the rescue group was Caustic.  The villain had a firm grip on Midoriya’s neck.  He sported an enraged snarl and his eyes were those of a man on the edge.

“Stop right there!”  He called out.  “We’re going to do this my way, or you, All Might,”  he continued, staring directly at Toshinori, “will watch your favorite student die.  Even if you rush me now, I’ll be able to kill him before you can stop me.  I’ve killed people this way before.  It’s not pretty.”  The rescue group was frozen as they tried to figure out what to do.  Toshinori made up his mind.

“Stop!”  He called out.  “You want me, right?”  He stepped forward ever so slightly and winced as Caustic visibly tightened his grip on Midoriya.  “Let him go, and I’ll hand myself over.”  Before Caustic could respond or Tsukauchi could scold him for being foolhardy, another voice spoke up.

“Yeah, no.”  Aizawa stepped forward and raised his eyebrow at Toshinori, clearly unimpressed.  But right away his eyes flicked back to the villain across the room and Toshinori felt like smacking himself.  Aizawa was here.  Caustic didn’t have any other weapons on him.  As long as they moved quickly...everything would be alright!  

“And who are you supposed to be?”  Caustic asked smugly.  Toshinori almost pitied the man now that he realized he was at Aizawa’s mercy.  Almost.

“You haven’t heard of me.”  Aizawa said.  “But you won’t forget me after today.”  With that the Erasure Hero began to walk swiftly towards the villain.

“What are you doing?”  Caustic called out.  “I will kill Midoriya!  Do you just not care?  How callous!”  The man let out a crazed laugh.  Aizawa was now halfway across the large room.  “Stop now!”  the villain shouted, suddenly losing his cool.  “Or he dies!”  It seemed now even the other students realized the villain’s mistake.  While they were still clearly worried for Midoriya, they were no longer terrified.  Instead they began to shift in hopeful anticipation.  Midoriya himself looked alarmed but Toshinori swore he spotted a glimmer of relief in his bright green eyes.

“Fine then!”  Caustic screeched.  “His death will be on your hands!”  And he smiled, all teeth and activated his quirk.

Except...to his surprise (and no one else’s) nothing happened.  Toshi watched as Caustic’s crazed smile went from manic to panicked.  From behind Toshinori could only see Aizawa’s hair floating, but he knew the moment Caustic saw the hero’s signature red eyes as the villain suddenly stumbled back, releasing Midoriya.  

“What did you do to me?!”  Caustic asked, desperately looking at his hands.  As he looked up he saw Aizawa merely feet away.  Instead of answering, the dark haired hero simply lashed out with his capture gear entangling Caustic.  With one swift motion he yanked the villain towards him and delivered a devastating blow to the man’s head.  

Caustic was knocked out cold, and Toshinori let out a breath of relief.  Aizawa turned back towards them and called out, “All clear!”  His words broke the group out of their trance and they rushed to the students.  Toshinori belined for his boy and wrapped him in a hug, mindful of his arm.  Midoriya grasped his shirt with his uninjured arm tightly.

“You’re okay, Izuku.”  He told him softly.  His boy simply held onto him and Toshinori felt the tell-tale wetness of Izuku’s common crying.  The ex-hero simply smiled fondly and pulled his student closer to him.

Toshinori observed the other students over his protege’s shoulder and saw them being assisted by Aizawa, Midnight, and a few officers.  They worked quickly to unlock the student’s chains and help Uraraka with her wound.  Toshinori turned his attention to Aizawa who was gruff as usual, but not without a very familiar protective light in his eyes.  All Might reflected that in his many years of hero-ing, not much could measure up to how badass Eraserhead had been single handedly sauntering up to Caustic and ending the man’s villainy with one punch.  While Toshi wouldn’t have minded getting to smash Caustic, he was content that the man had been properly humiliated and soundly defeated by his fellow hero.

“How is he?”  Toshinori was broken out of his musing by Tsukauchi’s voice beside him.  Toshi gently pulled Izuku away from his chest only to see that the kid had fallen unconscious. After a moment of panic, the ex-hero realized his boy had simply passed out from the stress of the day.

“Let’s get him unchained and to the hospital.”  Tsukauchi said with a gentle smile.  “The faster we get him there, the better off his arm will be.”  Toshinori nodded and adjusted his position so the officers with the bolt cutters could remove the chain.

It was four hours later when Midoriya woke up.  Toshinori knew because he had been watching the clock above the door of his boy’s hospital room in between watching over his resting charge.  Fortunately, the hospital staff had allowed him to stay in Izuku’s room.  Being the former symbol of peace had some perks on occasion.

Toshi had been thinking again of how impressed he was by Aizawa’s actions when he noticed his boy stirring.  He waited patiently for Izuku to wake.

Izuku’s eyes opened to All Might smiling at him softly.

“All Mi-”  He began before cutting himself off with a cough from the rawness of his throat.  Toshinori quickly handed him a cup of water with a straw.  After a few grateful sips he tried again.

“Is everyone okay?  How’s Uraraka?”  He asked, worried.

“Ever the selfless hero.”  Toshinori chuckled, ruffling his boy’s hair.  Under his large hands Izuku blushed, but Toshi could see a smile tugging at his lips.  “Everyone’s alright.”  He continued.  “Young Uraraka will be just fine especially when Recovery Girl comes by tomorrow.  And as for you…”  Midoriya sighed in relief at the news of his friends’ health, but glanced at his heavily bandaged arm as All Might trailed off.  “You’ll have a nasty scar.  But fortunately there will be no lasting damage.  We were finally able to reach your mother”  He continued,  “She’ll return from her trip tomorrow, and she’s very relieved you’re alright.”

“That’s good.  I hate making her worry.”  Izuku said quietly.  “What about Caustic?  And the others?” He asked.

“Caustic and Bloodhound were taken into custody.”  Toshinori told him.  “But Blinker never showed up.  Either she realized she was too late and escaped before we found her, or she never came to help them in the first place.  Either way, she’ll most likely show up to cause trouble again someday.”  Izuku took a moment to process the information.  The two sat in a comfortable silence for a few moments before Toshinori built up the nerve to tell Izuku what he’d been thinking about for hours now.

“Young Izuku…”  Toshinori began, fondly noticing his boy’s flushed expression at the use of his first name, “I’m sorry you were taken and hurt because of me.”  The words began to come out in a rush, “I deeply wish I were still my old self so I could have done more to save you.  And there is no excuse for having never shared my name with you.  It was due to my own carelessness that put you in a position where you could not escape your torture and I am so terribly sorry-”

“Toshinori Yagi.”  Izuku said cutting him off and effectively causing Toshinori’s brain to malfunction and his jaw to fall open in shock.  Izuku let out a small huff of amusement at All Might’s expression.  After a few seconds of confusion, Toshinori found his voice.

“But you-  I mean- How?  I was sure I hadn’t told you.”  He babbled out suddenly feeling a crushing relief that apparently he had told his boy his true name.

“Well…”  Izuku now looked reluctant to explain and Toshinori soon realized why.  “It was actually during my work study with Gran Torino.  He told me your name in passing.”  All at once Toshinori felt his guilt return.  He still hadn’t told him.  Thankfully Gran Torino cleaned up his mess as he was always claiming he did.

“I’m so sorry Young Izuku.”  Toshinori said, trying to convey his sincerity.  “I know I haven’t been the best mentor to you, but I’ll do whatever I can from this point on to do better by you.”

“Don’t say that, All Might!”  Izuku said, frantically shaking his head and holding up his hands as if to stop his mentor from continuing.  “You’ve been a great mentor!  You believed in me when no one else did, and you’re always there for me.  It never bothered me that you hadn’t told me your name.  I know it’s top secret to protect you and those close to you.”

“If anyone deserves to know my name, it’s you Young Izuku.”  Toshinori said without any doubt.  His statement stole the wind from Izuku’s sails and the boy immediately stopped protesting.  He sat silently for a moment processing his emotions and Toshinori noticed his eyes welling up. 

“Thank you, All Might.”  Izuku said finally.  “That means a lot.”  Toshinori smiled at him and pulled the boy into a hug.  Izuku yelped in surprise but quickly embraced his mentor.  Toshinori once again felt his wetness on his shirt where his boy had begun to cry, but he didn’t mind one bit.  After a few seconds the two pulled apart.

“There’s one more thing I have to ask you, my boy.”  Toshinori said.  Izuku blinked in surprise but nodded his acceptance.  “Tsukauchi said when you were talking to Caustic he couldn’t detect a lie when you said you didn’t know my name.  His quirk doesn’t work through video, but he didn’t think you were lying.  How did you do it?”  As Toshinori finished speaking Izuku looked away and seemed incredibly uncomfortable.  Toshinori hated making his boy unhappy, but he needed to know.  Everybody knew Izuku was a terrible liar.  Wasn’t he?

“I’m not proud of this…”  his boy began, “But I was bullied constantly growing up.  It has taken me a long time to realize how wrong it was for my teachers and peers to treat me the way they did, but my sessions with Hound Dog have been very helpful.”  Toshinori didn’t even know Izuku had been talking to Hound Dog.  Probably Aizawa’s doing.  He felt his respect for the man growing even more.  He’d have to do something special to thank the man for helping his boy in so many ways, even if said hero wasn’t a huge fan of his.  

“Over time, I realized it became awfully easy to lie to my mom about what was happening.  She worried about me so much already, she didn’t need to know her son was being hurt everyday.”  Izuku continued ruefully, and Toshinori realized he might have to recruit Aizawa to help him tear down Izuku’s old school.  “I’m sure my mom suspected what was happening.  But it turns out if you lie everyday for around ten years, you get to be pretty good at it.  If I’m keeping something from my friends I don’t put my heart into it as I can’t stand keeping things from them.  But if I need to, I can lie pretty well.  Hopefully I won’t have to like that ever again.”  As Izuku finished speaking, Toshinori ruffled his hair once again.

“Thank you for telling me Young Izuku.”  Toshinori said softly.  Izuku smiled and finally looked back up at his mentor.  Unsurprisingly, Toshi’s boy was beginning to cry again.

Toshinori laughed and pulled Izuku in for another hug.  Izuku hugged him right back and let out a wet laugh of his own.  When they let go, Toshinori would tell Izuku how he had become family to him.  

But no one could blame him if he held his son just a bit longer.