Timeloop Trouble

Chapter 29 - Another Kidnapping

Izuku avoided watching the news or going online for the specific days he knew the hero course was out on training camp. He didn't want to make himself more anxious than he already felt by constantly checking whether there was any coverage yet. Didn't want to wonder when he'd wake up to headlines describing a student kidnapping. To photos of Kacchan, or possibly someone else, as the media dragged UA through the mud. His mom had tried to bring it up, once, but she wasn't able to go through with it when she saw Izuku's face.

That was Izuku's cue that it had all started. That everything had gone south. That the training camp had been attacked, that someone had been taken. And so he redoubled his efforts to stay off the internet. His phone stayed off more than he turned it on as Izuku left it in his drawer. Out of sight is out of mind, right? And so he drowned himself in work and projects. It wasn't until his mom knocked on his door two days later, telling him someone was on the phone for him, that Izuku realized the holes in this strategy.

"Hi, uhm, I'm actually really busy now so-" Izuku started after Inko convinced him to answer the phone. He hadn't asked who was calling for him. Probably just a classmate to ask for advice or whether or not he'd seen the news. Nothing important.

"If you hang up on me I swear I'll fucking kill you."

"Kacchan?" Izuku gasped.

"Yes, Kacchan," he huffed. "Do you have any fucking idea how hard it is to get a hold of you?! You knew this shit was gonna happen and you decide to fucking vanish off the face of the earth like-"

"Kacchan, oh my god, you're okay," Izuku gasped, ignoring his angry yelling. "You're okay! Oh thank god. You're okay. You're safe-"

"Yeah, I wasn't the one they fucking kidnapped but they sure as hell tried," Katsuki snapped. That implied someone else was kidnapped in his stead.

"Who did they take?" Izuku asked, dreading the answer.

"Who the fuck do you think, Deku?!" Katsuki asked. "You warned two of us for a damn reason!"

Shinsou. Oh god. Oh no. Izuku was afraid of this. Knew the League had targeted Kacchan due to his villainous behavior and Fumikage because of his villainous quirk. Hitoshi had both. He had the freaky mind control quirk that creeped people out and he didn't act like a hero at all. He wasn't flashy or powerful or strong- Not in a way the public wanted. Instead he was this scrawny tired teenager who hadn't made it into the hero course, wanting to prove to the world they were wrong. The perfect target.

"So fucking fix this shit!"

"Fix- Kacchan, I can't-" Izuku started, only to be interrupted.

"You know where they took him, right?" Katsuki asked. It was a big assumption to make, but he wasn't exactly wrong. Izuku did know where he was, where he would be, what would happen. And Kacchan knew he knew that, too. "So get him out of there!"

"I can't, Kacchan. They're- The League of Villains is strong and I'm quirkless and I can't just waltz in there and demand-" Izuku rambled.

"Then take me with you."

"What?" Izuku asked, eyes widening at the implications. Either Kacchan was suggesting a rescue mission, or... Or he was suggesting an exchange. A trick, probably, but still. "I'm not putting you in any more danger, Kacchan!"

"Too bad, cause I've got a squad here and we're ready to fucking go!" Katsuki snapped at him. "So send me some coordinates and meet us there or I'll kill you for real, understand?!"

With that the call ended, leaving Izuku to stand dumbfounded in the living room. He slowly put the phone down, taking a deep breath. So it was a rescue mission. Okay. Izuku could do rescue. He'll come up with a plan to get Shinsou out of there without having to directly interfere, without having to endanger his friends. He'd have to see which people were part of Kacchan's squad first, though.