After eating, Inko and Izuku moved to the couch, settling in for the night. Neither of them cared much about what to watch, so they just scrolled through the options until Izuku picked a random movie.

As if fate itself had a twisted sense of humor, the title card faded in — and it was about a mother-son relationship.

They exchanged a glance. Neither commented.

At first, it wasn't awkward at all. They weren't paying much attention to the movie anyway, instead getting caught up in talking. They spoke about random little things — the news, some funny incidents at U.A., and even reminisced about things from when Izuku was a kid. The dialogue from the film became little more than background noise.

But then came the ending scene.

The mother and son on-screen were suddenly not having a wholesome bonding moment. They were tangled together, the soft soundtrack playing over heavy breathing. They were fucking hard.

Both of them froze.

Inko's cheeks reddened instantly, and Izuku's jaw tensed. Neither dared look at the other.

When the credits finally rolled, Inko stood up quickly, brushing off her skirt as if nothing happened.

"I'm… heading to bed," she said softly, and walked toward her room without another word.

Izuku stayed on the couch, grabbing the remote and flipping over to a football match just to clear his head. He slouched back, eyes on the screen but mind still replaying what he'd just seen.

'What the fuck was that? Who even funded that… Diddy?' he thought, shaking his head in disbelief.

After a deep sigh, he brushed it off and focused on the game.

"HOODIE HERO!"

The shout echoed faintly from somewhere far below, the voice hitting Izuku's ears with instant recognition.

'Oh yeah… Mt. Lady. Guess I should go see her,' he thought, flicking off the TV and lights in one smooth motion. He tugged on his hoodie, zipped it halfway, and stepped onto the balcony before shooting into the night sky.

The cool wind rushed past him as he cut across the city skyline, the hum of streetlights fading beneath the rhythmic thump of his heartbeat.

When he landed on the roof of the Channel Six Radio Station, he spotted her instantly — Mt. Lady, sitting casually on the ledge, her legs dangling over the edge as she scrolled through videos on her phone.

For a split second, he considered sneaking up on her for a little surprise… then quickly dismissed the thought. Knowing her, it'd probably end with him getting drop-kicked off the building.

"Hey," he called out casually.

She jerked in surprise, whipping her head around. The moment she saw him, a smile broke across her face — but instead of the hug he was expecting, she stepped forward and drove her fist straight into his gut.

He didn't even flinch.

She, on the other hand, instantly winced and pulled her hand back, shaking it. "Ow—! What the hell are you made of?"

"I guess you're upset," he said dryly.

"Duh," she replied, dripping sarcasm.

"But in my defense, I was busy — and I don't have your number. Honestly, I never even agreed to meet. Kinda your fault, really."

"Yeah, but it's still rude not to show. Take some accountability, will ya?" she shot back.

'One hundred women versus accountability… indeed,' Izuku thought to himself with a faint smirk.

"Alright, fine. Let's just drop it. So what's up?" he asked, moving to sit on the ledge beside her.

"I'm just bored," she admitted, leaning back on her palms. "I'm on patrol, but I don't really have a partner right now. This part of the city's too damn peaceful. No crimes, no action… just me babysitting empty streets."

"Yeah… it kinda is quiet," he said, scanning the view beneath them.

That's when something caught his eye.

Down in a narrow alley, a homeless man was standing with another figure — shrouded partially in shadow.

"Huh?"

"What? You see something?" she asked, leaning forward until her shoulder pressed lightly against his arm.

"Yeah… down there. Let's go."

Before she could ask another question, Izuku hooked an arm under her knees and another around her back, lifting her in a smooth princess carry.

She blinked up at him, startled — and for a moment, her breath caught.

'He's… so manly,' she thought, her cheeks warming.

Then, without warning, they shot into the sky. The sudden burst of speed made her yelp, clutching onto his hoodie as the air whipped past them.

Midair, Izuku halted sharply, hovering in the night. His eyes locked on the scene below.

The homeless man had just been handed a small wad of bills — but as soon as the exchange ended, the other man palmed a small, metallic chip and slapped it onto the side of the homeless man's neck.

At first, the man didn't notice… but within seconds, his hands flew to his throat, body jerking. Thick veins bulged along his neck and temples, twitching unnaturally.

Izuku's eyes narrowed.

The chip pulsed faintly, releasing something into his bloodstream. The man's pupils blew wide before turning an unnatural, deep crimson.

The handler's voice was faint from this height, but Izuku's hearing picked it up clearly:

"Now… go wreak havoc."

That very moment, the homeless man bent his knees and sprang into the air with inhuman strength. As he rose, his feet began to shift — bone and flesh warping with a sick, mechanical grind until the bottoms looked like the heavy base of a plate compactor.

BOOOM!

He crashed down on the asphalt, the road spiderwebbing beneath him, chunks of pavement launching into the air from the sheer force. The shockwave rattled the nearest streetlights.

"Alright," Izuku said without missing a beat, his voice firm, "you go after the guy in the alley — I'll deal with this one."

Mt. Lady gave a quick nod. He released her from his arms, and she immediately shot up to her giant form in a single, fluid motion — the ground trembling beneath her massive weight — before shrinking back down mid-step as she darted into the alley to cut off the other man.

Izuku dropped from the sky, boots hitting the cracked pavement just a few meters from the transformed homeless man.

'Seriously… what the hell is up with these quirks?' he thought, eyes narrowing. 'A plate compactor? That's your grand genetic lottery win? Some of these quirks are more like cruel jokes.'

The man's head snapped toward him. Without hesitation, he crouched and launched himself again, descending like a human wrecking ball.

But before he could hit the ground, Izuku was there — one arm shooting up like a piston, his hand clamping around the man's throat mid-air. The impact never came.

The man's legs kicked helplessly, plate-compactor feet twitching as Izuku's grip tightened. In seconds, his eyes rolled back, body going limp as he slipped into unconsciousness.

When Izuku let go, the man crumpled onto the cracked street. That's when he spotted it — the chip stuck to the side of the man's neck. It popped loose, clattering to the ground. Beneath it was a strange, faintly scorched mark.

Izuku's eyes darkened.

'Same mark I saw on that giant guy before… This is just like the vigilante thing. But now it's chips? That's bad.'

A shadow passed over him as Mt. Lady returned from the alley, her expression grim.

"He got away," she said, slightly out of breath. "Melted into the crowd before I could pin him down."

Izuku straightened, hands in his pockets. "Yeah… we're gonna have to patrol every night from now on until we catch this guy."

Her heart skipped a beat.

'Every night… with him? Is this real life?' she thought, cheeks heating.

They cuffed the unconscious man for the authorities, made their reports, and then rose back into the sky — heading for the roof of Channel Six's Radio Station once more.

Sitting on the ledge, Izuku laid out his theory.

"I've heard something like this before," Mt. Lady said slowly, brow furrowing. "But back then, it was small-time — nothing major. You're saying… those people are back?"

"Not sure," Izuku replied. "Could be the same group, could be new players. But from the looks of it, these things they're making take time. That means they're not ready for a big move yet… so we've got a window before the next strike. We just have to be ready."

"Yeah… well, I'm available every night starting now," she said with a small, almost shy smile. "I should probably get your number first."

Izuku smirked slightly and shook his head. "Nah. Can't have you figuring out who I am just yet. Here—follow my IG instead."

Her lips tightened into a frown as she typed it in. "Great. Now my fanbase is gonna ask why I'm following an account with zero followers."

"Tell 'em it's your aunt's. Or whatever," he said casually, already stepping toward the roof's edge. "Anyway… I should bounce. Peace ✌️."

Before she could say another word, he launched himself into the air, disappearing into the night.

Mt. Lady remained there, staring after him with a mix of irritation and amusement before letting out a sigh.

'Whatever… as long as I made some progress,' she thought, a small smile tugging at her lips.

TO BE CONTINUED