Chameleon - Shoto ASD fic -

42

CHAPTER 42

'What the hell do you want you damn extras?' He says gruffly, his red eyes flashing in anger.

'We want you to pretend to be a villain' says Hitoshi candidly. I see Backugo blink slowly, like his brain is digesting the information.

'What the hell do you mean?' He manages to get out.

"We have reason to believe Nezu is brainwashed. He cares about UA, so we're hoping to wake him up by threatening the school' I say coldly.

'You guys are idiots' He says. 'Why haven't you talked to Aizawa?'

'Nesu's smart. If Aizawa knows, he'll know.' There's an awkward pause.

'Fine. What will I get out of it?'

'What, too chicken?' Mina says. 'I'm no chicken!' He growls. 'When do you want me to do it?'

Everyone smiles at him, and I copy.

'How's now?'

-later-

Mina finishes painting his face. 'Done!' She says. Backugo catches himself in the mirror.

'I look like a twat'

'Correction: you are a twat' Hitoshi says. Bakcugo rolls his eyes. 'He'll never fall for this. He's literally a genius. He'll know it's me.

'Doesn't matter. If the threat seems real, he'll react accordingly. Besides, its not too far fetched that you could lose your marbles and go rouge' Iida says.

'Fuck you four eyes' He says, huffing. 'Fine. I'll head to the roof, you guys spread panic'.

We all nod, and head out. Something still seems off. I pull Deku aside.

'Something's wrong' I tell him bluntly. His face furrows. 'What do you mean? He asks. 'I don't know.'
Suddenly, we hear booming explosions, followed by screaming. We both smile, running outside.

'I'M GUNNA FUCKING KILL YOU ALL!' Backugo yells. setting off explosions.

'That'll do it' Deku says. I nod in agreement. We stare up at him.

'DIIIIIEEEEE! He yells, throwing blasts down at the crowd. Despite his facade, he expertly avoids the groups of students on the ground.

Not before long, Nezu and a few other teachers appear. 'This should be interesting' Deku says. 'Most teachers are dealing with the Natsuo incident'.

Suddenly, Backugo jumps in the air, as Hound Dog just misses him. He lands on another roof. Thirteen creates a void, which he dodges, continually firing (but missing) at the ground.

I look over at Nezu. I think that one's concern? I'm not sure. I see his eyes flit around, looking at the surrounding area. His eyes light up. He walks over and stands next to a van.

'Come down at once foul villain and fight like a chimera' He yells. Backugo aims just left of Nezu, hitting the van. Nezu makes a break for it, as hot steam begins pouring out of the windows.

A water truck. Clever.

The dense smoke completely covers everyone on the ground. Backugo hops down, spinning to clear the smoke. But then I see a pair of hands appear from the ground, pulling him down.

A coordinated attack. Backugo yells, falling fowards as Hound Dog places a muzzle on him. Nezu walks up to him.

'What do you think you're doing Backugo?' Nezu says calmly.

'Nezu? Is that you in there?" He responds. Nezu sighs.

'I thought so. Hound Dog, take him to Recovery Girl. The rest of you-' He looks over to where Deku and I are stood, as well as Mina, Hitoshi and Iida. 'Come to my office immediately.

-later-

'Okay, would you mind explaining what the hell that was about?' He says angrily.

'We thought you were brainwashed' Hitoshi says. We all nod in agreement.

'Don't be stupid. Nobody on campus is brainwashed. We all underwent tests. Even myself'

'What about non visual quirks?' Deku asked. Nezu sighs. 'There are still markers.' Nezu says. 'Such as changed speech, personality, excetera excetera'.

Shit. We've really stepped in it this time.

'All of you can return to your dorms. I will discuss with Eraserhead your punishments as soon as he returns.' We all stand up.

'Except for you, Shoto. I have news regarding your brother'. Everybody leaves.

'So, how is he?' I ask.

'Oh absolutely fine, he's already awoken from his brainwashing. But that's not what I wanted to discuss. We've already identified the culprit, and have been monitoring him for some time.'

'Who?' I ask. Nezu produces a tea pot from his drawer, chuckling.

'I'm not at liberty to discuss that. However, what I can tell you Shoto is that it is paramount that the orb be returned to your room'.

This throws me off guard. 'Why?' I ask.

'Because we need him to think we are still in the dark'. I nod, understanding. 'Is it really a monitor?'

'No, it's an orb controlling who we believe is the brainwashed traitor'.

'Then why is it in my room. Wouldn't it make more sense to be in the room of the person being brainwashed because they could protect it?'

Nezu chuckles. 'No. It was meant to be incriminating evidence against you, Sho. Since you are currently unable to use your ability, as well as your autism, it makes you a prime target.'

'Why my autism?'

'You copy those around you, and chameleon yourself to fit in. Similar behaviours to the brainwashed traitor, if you think about it.' He takes a sip of tea.

'So this is all happening to me because I have autism?' I ask, aghast. 'You were a target even before your diagnosis, Sho. It is easy to make people who are different into villains. People fear what they do not understand'. He sips tea. 'However, you are lucky in your case that it is your peculiarities that make you fantastic at hero work'. I smile.

'Thank you Nezu'.

'Alright, off with you. And remember, we had a lengthy discussion about your brother and your indiscretions, so please act a little upset'. I nod, understanding, leaving the room.

Your autism makes you a villain.

I shake my head. I don't want to go down that rabbit hole at the moment. Before I know it, I'm back at the common room. I spot Iida, making himself a coffee.

'All okay?' He asks. I nod. 'Yeah. Natsuo is fine.' Iida smiles. 'I'm glad'. He takes a sip of his coffee.

'Well, I'm going to complete next weeks homework. See you'. He walks away, disappearing through the double doors.

I slump onto the couch. Okay. So we know compress is brainwashed, as well as somebody inside UA. Compress is necessary for storing Aoto's quirk, which explains why he's mixed up in all this.

Touya is related to me, and I was the intended mark for scapegoating, so that makes sense. I think.

He's brainwashed other's as a distraction, either to kidnap, steal, or plant evidence. What's his overall aim? It doesn't seem to align with the LOV at all.

I'm awoken from my thoughts by a mop of green hair.

'You okay?' I snap my attention to Deku, smiling. 'Yeah, all okay'. He gives me a hug, and I feel him put something into my pocket.

He stands up. 'Okay, we'll I'm going to make some food. Want some?' I nod enthusiastically. He smiles, then heads over to the kitchen.

Carefully, I pull the note out of my pocket.

"Do not react to this message.

IIDA IS THE BRAINWASHED TRAITOR."