I use both hands to give enthusiastic waves to the assembled crowd as I walk onto the temporarily constructed stage and am surprised to actually get a few scattered cheers. Wow, has All Might's reputation really tanked this much since I came out at the Sport's Festival?
Internships have technically ended, but since it's Saturday UA had apparently decided to allow the students to stay with their families until school starts again on Monday. Meaning that there's no issue with the HPSC holding the public blood test right outside of the hero school's gates! All the teachers are in attendance, of course, as is the HPSC president and her pet Hawks, along with the crowd.
All Might's presence is a given of course - in his skinny form, not much use in trying to hold up appearances after it became common knowledge - though he looks delightfully terrible! Huge bags under his eyes, his cheeks more sunken than when he left me on a roof, and his clothes hanging off of his stick-like frame so much that his shirt is almost slipping off one of his shoulders.
I've never been happier seeing someone in such a horrible state.
I am surprised to see Inko and Izumi standing beside him, though. The former glaring at me with murder in her eyes and the later shuffling uncertainly and leaning away from her mother. Aww~, trouble among the Yagis. What a wonderful sight~.
To make sure there's no mistake about how happy I am to see that my efforts haven't been for naught, I give the matriarch a bright smile. Then I have to hold back a chuckle at the audible grinding of her teeth and the twitch of her hand, the incredibly faint glow in her eyes briefly signaling the activation of her quirk before almost immediately fading away. This woman was really about to attack me in front of a crowd of witnesses. Hell, an entire nation of witnesses given how many news crews have their cameras focused on us!
She must be more upset at losing social status than I thought~.
Too bad that the HPSC president steps forward with three doctors and a single scientist before I can properly taunt them. "Hello everyone," she starts with a completely unoriginal greeting. "After several weeks of deliberation, we have come to the decision that the rumors about Japan's Symbol of Peace need to be put to rest." She ignores both heckling and questions from the assembled audience with great poise and rationality, continuing on as if none had spoken in the first place.
"To ensure that there are no accusations of foul play, we've requested the presence of a doctor each from Europe, Japan, and Russia. Additionally, we've obtained permission to utilize the invention of one of I-Island's top scientists to conduct the test, leaving no room for sabotage from anyone who might want to alter the results to reflect an outcome favorable to them." At this she glares at both me, and Inko. Yes, I'm a villain so the glare is deserved, but did Inko seriously try something before anyone even showed up for this? I guess I shouldn't be surprised. She did let everyone think I was dead back then.
`~`
All For One hums happily to himself as Doctor Ujiko removes the respirator covering his mouth, pointedly ignoring the man's grumbling. Yes, he is aware that removing his breathing support even for such a short time as this is ill-advised, but he must celebrate! Why, the sight of his nemesis in such a pathetic state alone would be worth opening the fifty year old whiskey he'd stored away! For the public obtaining confirmation that their symbol is no better than a deadbeat dad, at best?
Well, his one hundred and fifty year old whiskey will remain sealed for its intended purpose of One For All returning to him, but the one hundred year old whiskey is perfect for the occasion! And he can't very well drink it with his mouth covered, now can he?
He glories in the first sip, letting the richness of the aged drink linger on his tongue before swallowing, ear canals focused on the scientist's explanation of his machine. Not that it is complicated, simply being a more capable blood testing machine. Not only will it be able to confirm that those who insert their hands within the machine are related - regardless of supposed relationship - but it will also be able to accurately state how they are related. Which means that if one of the parents is a twin of the same gender, there will be no misunderstandings regarding which of the two is truly the 'uncle'!
The two-hundred year old man does recall this being an issue back during the dawn of quirks, where for some unfathomable reason one twin would be born with a quirk but the other wouldn't, then one of their children would be born the opposite of their parent's status, causing accusations of infidelity to skyrocket. If he recalls correctly, he'd orchestrated such a situation for the fourth user of his brother's quirk. The man disappeared after that, and the next he knew of the quirk it was being wielded by a large bald man who was an extremely vocal advocate for the LGBTQ community.
All For One actually fully supported the community himself, and as such simply kept an eye on the man without antagonizing him. At least until the hero nearly got himself killed without having chosen a successor that he could identify, after which he resumed his previous policy of throwing problem after problem accompanied by taunts at the hero, ensuring the entire time that there would be no doubt that it was in fact All For One who was responsible.
The supervillain shakes his head free of the memories, settling back into the luxuriously comfortable armchair he's chosen to watch the show from and taking another sip of his whiskey and letting out a satisfied sigh.
Really, the only thing that could make what he's about to witness any better would be being able to view the event with his own eyes rather than a quirk.
`~`
I smirk at the man I would happily murder as I stick my hand in the machine and it prickles as it's scanned. Toshinori just looks resigned as he resolutely inserts his own hand, working very hard to avoid looking at me. Sixty seconds later the doctors are examining the initial results and nodding to each other. Then the machine does whatever process it does and sixty seconds later once more they're consulting on the second batch of results, taken only to make sure that they're consistent. Evidently they are since they step forward and the European clears her throat while Toshinori and I pull our hands out of the machine.
"We've examined the results, and we can confirm that everything seems to be correct." She pauses and the crowd immediately starts screaming at her to reveal them, looking absolutely deranged. She's clearly unsettled by the fervor that they're showing for the truth, which only highlights her lack of connection to Japan and raises how honest she'll be, in my own estimation. After pushing away whatever nasty feeling she has about the near religious worship of All Might, she opens her mouth and gives them the answer they've been waiting for.
"The results are conclusive: All Might… is not Midosagi's father!"
`~`
One hundred year old whiskey flies across the room, All For One's splendid spit-take somehow causing a rainbow to form in the liquid. Most likely the result of a quirk he'd stolen and forgotten about at some point. "WHAT!?"
`~`
My mouth drops open in shock and I stare at the female doctor - who evidently is not as honest as I was expecting - in disbelief. "Bullshit." My head tilts and I reach out to catch the frying pan that bounces off my head with the ease of practice. "I was there, I know who I'm related to."
The two foreign doctors look at me with disinterest - the local one is sneering at me - before the Russian man speaks. "Ze resulz say ozerwise. You have no blood relazion zo zis man," he points to Toshinori, who has an expression of abject relief and vindication on his face before he shifts to glaring at me with even more murder in his eyes than Inko earlier. Speaking of her, she doesn't look relieved, just vindicated. Izumi though…
Well, she's looking at me like I betrayed her, but the expression is clearly mixed with confusion. My mind whirls rapidly as I try to figure out why the foreign doctors would lie about this. I ignore whatever speech the president is giving to the crowd, probably something along the lines of not believing what a villain says just because they seem sympathetic or whatever, blah blah blah.
It just doesn't make sense for the foreigners to lie, and with how important this is, there's no way the HPSC would have risked it being found out that they bribed them. Not that I wouldn't have expected some kind of attempt at subverting the results. Like how that bitch Inko-
…Bitch Inko.
"I would like another test!" I step forward and shout, ignoring Hawks gathering his feathers into a sword and holding it against my throat as I stare into the president's eyes. She quirks an eyebrow at me before moving her shoulders into a slight shrug.
"I have no objection to that, though I fail to see the point. The results will be the same." The scientist is confidently nodding his head next to her. I let a smile spread across my face.
"Good, though I think the results will be different," I say as I turn towards the green haired girl on the stage. "Because I want to do my test with Izumi instead of Toshinori."
My declaration silences the crowd, and I see confusion flood the expressions of all the Yagis, - though Hawks looks more wary than anything else - none of them understanding my intentions. Except maybe Inko, seeing as she scoffs and crosses her arms. "Please, why should we cater to the delusions of a villain? We've already gotten what we came for, there's no more reason to waste our time here. Some of us have jobs to do."
I smirk and see her confidence falter for a moment. "Oh? Is someone scared of me doing the test with their daughter? What's the harm in spending another five minutes doing something that you think is worthless? If anything, wouldn't it just further showcase that I'm nothing more than 'a delusional villain'?"
I see her expression twisting for a moment, but it's really not her that I need to agree. No, that honor belongs to- "I'll do it." The assembled turn to look at Izumi but she ignores them, firmly moving to the machine and shoving her hand in one of the two holes before meeting my eyes with a confidence that's been completely absent since I've been at UA. "I need to know for sure."
Well, looks like someone has come to a similar conclusion. I don't bother responding, stepping forward and sticking my hand in the other hole. When the results spit out a minute later, the Russian doctor takes them before either of the other two have the chance, peering down at them and nodding his head before passing them off. The European and Japanese have vastly different reactions, the woman merely raising an eyebrow and the man physically blanching… before glaring at Inko. The woman shifts uneasily and Yagi's brows furrow in confusion, looking between everyone in an attempt to understand. Something that he has no hope of accomplishing, judging by the sheer bafflement his face is filled with when the Russian man speaks.
"Midosagi and Izumi Yagi… ARE ZWIN SIBLINGS!" The crowd has a moment of confusion at his continued difficulties with the letter 't' in Japanese, but when the realization hits…
It hits hard.
`~`
All For One frowns as he takes another sip of his whiskey, thinking through the implications of this announcement. Before he gets far, though, Doctor Ujiko speaks. "Sir, do you really not remember?"
"Hmm?" The lord of the Underworld makes a questioning sound, only giving the man part of his attention. Because All Might not being the boy's father means that he's not the girl's father either. Which means-
"As I feared, your injury did have complications," Doctor Ujiko sighs, getting All For One's attention.
"My injury?" He questions, his frown deepening. He'd thought that all the complications of having All Might smash his skull had been taken care of. What could the doctor have missed that he's only realizing now?
The Doctor grimaces. "Well, I say complications, but it might simply be that you don't remember. You were quite drunk at the time."
"Stop playing games and come out with it," All For One growls, and takes a sip of his whiskey to calm himself.
Only to do a repeat of his earlier spit take at the Doctor's answer. "All Might isn't the twins' birth father. You are."